Chapter ? Introduction
1. Background information of the study
2. Significance of the study
3. Structure of the thesis
1.1Background information of the study
A great change in the concept of language teaching has taken place in the past few decades,from the teacher-centered method to the learner-centered approach. In recent years, the learner autonomy has become a hot issue in second language acquisiton. Henry Holec defined it as “the ability to take charge of one’s own learning”.Autonomous learning has been necessary for English learners for the following reasons. First, autonomous learning is considered as the ultimate goal of education,which is “learn how to learn”. Therefore, cultivating learners’ autonomy is actually cultivating the learners’ learning ability, so that they could become independent social members who would live and work successfully. Second, the teachers should help the learners to develop the attitude that learning is a lifelong process and to acquire the skills of self-directed learning. With the China’s entry into WTO, China’s success of bidding for the 2008 Olympic Games and more international corporation set their branch company in China, more and more people realize the importance of mastering English. Therefore, they started learning English. We could see it from the rapid increase in the number of the language training centers and institutions.
Language acquisition is a very complicated process, which is influenced by many factors. During the late 1970s Krashen put forward an account of SLA. In the early 1980s, this was expanded into a broader-based model, described in Krashen (1981;1982) as five linked hypotheses: acquisition/learning, monitor, natural order, input, and affective filter. The Input Hypothesis became most developed. According to this hypothesis, the learner improves and progresses along the “natural order” when he/she receives second language “input” that is.
