Imaging the second language autonomous learner: a study of the relationship between ESOL learners’ autonomy and identity development in the UK

This thesis analyses the relationship between the learner autonomy and learner identity of English for Speakers of Other Languages (henceforth, ESOL) learners in a further education college in Southeast England.

It stresses the significant influence of ESOL learners’ autonomy development and identity construction on their language learning in the UK. Specifically, it endeavours to explore (i) how ESOL learners perceive and develop their autonomy and identity; (ii) how ESOL teachers perceive and enhance learners’ autonomy and identity and (iii) the challenges faced in developing learners’ autonomy and constructing their identities. To address the research questions and achieve the aims of the study, a qualitative methodology was used. Classroom observations and semi-structured individual and focus group interviews were conducted with ESOL learners and teachers, and an interpretivist approach using thematic analysis employed.

The findings revealed a significant direct interrelationship between learner autonomy and learner identity and on influencing language learning. It was found that how learners perceived themselves throughout the learning journey either enhanced or restricted their autonomous learning, and that as learners gained a better understanding and control of their learning and developed their proficiency, they constructed more positive and desired identities. This,however, was not without challenges, such as limitations resulting from past traumatic experiences, past educational background, low levels of competence with technology and the restrictions of the COVID 19 pandemic. The study showed that the learners’ autonomy and identities changed at different levels in different learners at different times. Furthermore, although the learners seemed to have the ability to control their learning and identity, they were mostly unaware of this ability and the extent to which their actions and inactions influencedtheir language learning. It also revealed that the teachers supported the learners based on their perceptions of the learners, and that both learners and teachers faced challenges in helping learners to transition through different phases of their autonomy, identity and the language
learning process.

The originality and contributions of this study lie in its exploration of the relationship between learner autonomy and learner identity of young adult ESOL refugee and asylum seekers in the UK, something which the literature seems to overlook. The study sheds light on various aspects of language learning, including two stages of learner motivation – initial and successive motivation; positive and negative learner autonomy; silent learning in adult language learning; and “guided autonomy”, defined as the support provided to language learners to take more control of their language learning consciously and effectively. In light of the findings, the study has implications for ESOL teachers to be more conscious of learners’ autonomy levels and identities to ensure that their learners are aware of and reflect on their abilities and responsibilities, and so can take informed and deliberate actions towards their learning and management of self-perceptions. For researchers, there is a need to further probe into the relationship between young adult refugee and asylum ESOL learners’ autonomy and identity development in the UK, in different settings and on larger scales, to better understand how the relationship between these constructs influences language learning.