Editorial

Relay Journal ◽  
2018 ◽  
pp. 255-258
Keyword(s):  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
International Studies ◽  
Short Introduction ◽  
Dialogic Process ◽  
Evolution Of Ideas ◽  
Research Institute

Welcome to Relay Journal Volume 1 Issue 2 which is published by the Research Institute for Learner Autonomy Education (RILAE) at Kanda University of International Studies (KUIS), Japan. We are grateful to all of the authors and reviewers for participating in the dialogic process that has led to the publication of this issue. We hope you enjoy reading not only the final versions of the papers, but also the original submissions and the ensuing comments and responses. The original papers have been retained in order for readers to be able to capture the evolution of ideas facilitated by the dialogue. The PDF versions were then revised based on the comments and ideas that the dialogue stimulated. In fact, we hope that the dialogue and thinking will still continue. This short introduction will briefly summarise the submissions and also include announcements and acknowledgements.

scholarly journals Editorial

Relay Journal ◽  
2018 ◽  
pp. 1-5
Keyword(s):  
Best Practice ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
International Studies ◽  
The World ◽  
New Ideas ◽  
Research Institute

Welcome to the first issue of Relay Journal which is published by the Research Institute for Learner Autonomy Education (RILAE) at Kanda University of International Studies (KUIS), Japan. We are so pleased to be able to present this new publication to you, specifically established for the purposes of sharing best practice and new ideas in the area of learner autonomy and all related topics. We hope this will become a thriving, supportive and long-lived site for practitioners and researchers around the world. In fact, we hope it will become a community more than anything; a place where we can learn from each other and advance the field, help learners to learn better, teachers to develop new skills and researchers to gain new insights.

Editorial

Relay Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 251-256
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Teacher Education ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Teacher Training ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Service Professional ◽  
Research Institute

We are excited to present you Volume 2 Issue 2 of Relay Journal published by the Research Institute of Learner Autonomy Education at Kanda University (KUIS), Japan. The Relay Journal aims to foster a dialogue spanning the globe discussing topics related to learner autonomy. This issue of Relay Journal is dedicated to teacher and advisor education for learner autonomy. The topic is particularly important, since –– apart from some exceptions –– autonomy is not always integrated into curricula for teacher education, and in addition, very few programmes exist for advisor education. Therefore, it is crucial to include opportunities for in-service professional development and reflection on how to foster autonomy and how to support language learners as teachers or as advisors. This can be done in the form of teacher training, mentoring and/or tutoring programmes, action-research, or reflection in- and on-practice.

scholarly journals Reflections on the 7th RILAE LAb Session

2021 ◽  
pp. 391-396
Author(s):  
Amelia Yarwood
Keyword(s):  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Afternoon Session ◽  
Learner Agency ◽  
First Time ◽  
Research Institute

This paper reports on the 7th LAb Session hosted online by the Research Institute for Learner Autonomy Education (RILAE) on December 3rd, 2021. This LAb session featured 19 presenters, including three invited speakers, from 8 different countries to explore the concepts of autonomy and learner agency. The presenters shared short summaries of research, theoretical conceptualisations and descriptions of practice centered around the theme. Pre-recorded sessions were made available to attendees the day prior, while the live sessions were broken into a morning and afternoon session. This article provides a broad summary of the presentations and my reflections as a first-time co-organiser

scholarly journals Landmarks in Self-Access: A Summary of the 6th RILAE LAb Session

2021 ◽  
pp. 177-189
Author(s):  
Jo Mynard ◽  
Dominique Vola Ambinintsoa ◽  
Ena Hollinshead ◽  
Ward Peeters
Keyword(s):  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Recent Event ◽  
Research Institute

The field of self-access has spanned 50 years, and in this report, the authors give a brief overview of a recent event organized by the Research Institute for Learner Autonomy Education (RILAE) with the theme of ‘Landmarks in self-access’. The authors also make reference to some landmark and recent publications in learner autonomy and self-access that have influenced the field.

scholarly journals Promoting Learner Autonomy and Self-Directed Learning: The Evolution of a SALC Curriculum

2017 ◽  
pp. 169-182 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jo Mynard ◽  
Rob Stevenson
Keyword(s):  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Language Learner ◽  
The Self ◽  
International Studies ◽  
Learning Center ◽  
Stages Of Development ◽  
Self Directed Learning ◽  
Directed Learning ◽  
Technical Challenges ◽  
Gradual Approach

If key aims of a SALC are to support learners and promote language learner autonomy, then the curriculum is an important tool in order to ensure that this is being systematically addressed. After explaining the context of the Self-Access Learning Center (SALC) at Kanda University of International Studies in Japan, the authors will briefly describe the self-directed learning curriculum, its evolution, and approaches to its evaluation. The development, implementation, and evaluation of a SALC curriculum is not straightforward as there may be political, financial, and technical challenges. However, with planning, persistence, and a gradual approach, a SALC curriculum can eventually become an integral part of a university program. Although the journey of this particular SALC is far from complete, charting its development so far could provide encouragement for SALC managers elsewhere, whose SALC curriculum may be at different stages of development.

scholarly journals Fostering Learner Autonomy as Agency: An Analysis of Narratives of a Student Staff Member Working at a Self-access Learning Center

2011 ◽  
pp. 268-280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atsumi Yamaguchi
Keyword(s):  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Staff Member ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
The Self ◽  
International Studies ◽  
Learning Center ◽  
Target Community ◽  
Analysis Of Narratives

This study investigates narrative stories of a student staff member working at the Self Access Learning Center (the SALC) at Kanda University of International Studies, Japan in order to discover whether / how her working experiences in the SALC have an impact on her identities especially focusing on her development of learner autonomy as agency. Drawing on four layers of narrative positioning (Wortham & Gadsden, 2006), I will explore: 1) the ways that agency is projected; and 2) how the learner’s involvement in a SALC impacts on her identities. The examination revealed that the learner’s involvement as a student staff member enhanced her agency to access a target community of English in the SALC. Drawing on the Communities of Practice (CoP) framework by Lave & Wenger (1991), I discuss the possibility that gaining voice in the target community might enable a learner to be more autonomous. Finally, this paper addresses the importance of learner involvement in SALCs – not only for the learners involved, but also for other SALC users in order to provide opportunities to activate both agency and autonomy.

Editorial

Relay Journal ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 1-4
Keyword(s):  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Teacher Autonomy ◽  
International Conference ◽  
Is Research ◽  
Present Volume ◽  
Learning Contexts ◽  
The World ◽  
New Ideas ◽  
High Level ◽  
Research Institute

We are pleased to present Volume 3, Issue 1 of Relay Journal. This journal’s purpose is to promote and disseminate research as well as practices related to learner and teacher autonomy, in various learning contexts around the world. The theme of this issue is research and learner autonomy, which corresponds with the general mission of RILAE (the Research Institute for Learner Autonomy Education). In late 2019, researchers affiliated with RILAE participated in a forum (Mynard et al., 2020) on this same theme at the 2019 JALT International Conference and subsequently discussed their work in an online LAb session. The enthusiastic response by participants at those events demonstrates the high level of interest in the topic, and the variety of the articles contained in this issue illustrates the diversity of potential research in our field. It is our hope that these articles inspire readers as examples of replicable research or by sparking new ideas for areas of investigation.

scholarly journals Developing Song Worksheets for a SALC

2010 ◽  
pp. 129-138
Author(s):  
Simon Cooke
Keyword(s):  
Best Practice ◽  
Materials Design ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
The Self ◽  
International Studies ◽  
Development Team

After receiving the Japanese Ministry of Education’s Best Practice award in 2003, the Self-Access Learning Centre (SALC) at Kanda University of international Studies (KUIS) has continued in its goal of creating materials and resources which aim to engage the learners whilst promoting learner autonomy. The development team has promoted its materials design and philosophy at a number of national and international conferences and in a variety of SLA publications (Kershaw et al., 2010).

scholarly journals Conceptualizing Leadership Development in the KUIS SALC

2017 ◽  
pp. 294-304
Author(s):  
Kevin Knight
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Leadership Development ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
International Studies ◽  
Learning Center ◽  
Mediated Discourse

On the campus of Kanda University of International Studies (KUIS) in Chiba, Japan, a proposal was presented for the leadership development of KUIS students in the KUIS Self-Access Learning Center (SALC) (Knight, 2017). Following Scollon (2001) and his mediated discourse analysis (MDA)-based nexus of practice concept, this paper explores how and why multiple storylines and histories intersect so that ‘leadership development’ is conceptualized as consulting programs in the SALC. The paper shows that Knight’s (2013) conceptualization of leadership as involving communication for creating and achieving visions is the basis for the proposed consulting programs and concludes by asking how leadership and learner autonomy should be conceptualized in a self-access learning center.

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