Part 3: Inquiry into instructional practices

Developing learnerand teacher

autonomy throughstudent journalling
Amanda Bradley
Miyazaki International
Collegeabradley@miyazaki-mic.ac.jp

About Amanda

Inspired by the interaction in my mother's multicultural junior high school class,I became a language teacher in 1968.1 have since taught French, Spanish, Catalan,and English to learners of all ages and levels. I have been on the faculty of Miyazaki
International College as a Fellowof Comparative Culture since 2000.
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Acknowledgements

First, I would like to express my appreciation to the MAYA editors and mycollaborative partners for their painstaking assistance. I also wish to expresssincere
gratitude to DigbyWarren for his edifying example and scholarly encouragement.
Lastly, many thanks must also go out to my students at MIC for inspiring me to share
the richness of their learning journeys.
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Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to describe howstudent journals can be used tofoster autonomy. To
illustrate this, I have selected journal entries that feature documenting (recording facts), student
reflections, and my own responses to their writings. Throughout this recursive process, the learners
co-construct themselves through a dialogic engagement of text and meta-text: Autonomy, then, is
concretized through reflexivity and critical engagement with written discourses.
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Introduction

This chapter reports a student journaling project at Miyazaki International College. It begins
with an explanation of the teaching and learning environment of the school. Next, the theory
behind learning journals is explained, and data from the students' journals, including my own
feedback, is used to demonstrate the ways in which theory can inform classroom practice.
MIC features an English immersion, team-taught, content-based, liberal arts curriculum.
Lower division classes- for first and second year students - are team-taught by a discipline
specialist in tandem with a language teacher. However, lower division English classes are solotaught by English teachers, and upper division classes - for third and fourth year students - aresolo-taught by discipline specialists.

The majority of our students are from Kyushu, many from rural areas, and in any class there
is likely to be a wide range of English proficiencies: to illustrate this, the entry-level TOEIC
score would typically range from around 200 to 500, with an approximate mean score of 330.
A DEEP APPROACH TO STUDENT LEARNING

Ian Hart (2000) describes the framework for student learning developed by Ramsden in whicha "deep approach" is".. .based on an intrinsic motivation or curiosity and a strategy which is
aimed at seeking meaning. There is a personal commitment to learning, which means that thestudent relates the content to personally meaningful contexts or to existing prior knowledge"(p-2).
Byusing a deep approach, the learner's perspective is valued. I feel that it is particularly
important that students adopt a deep approach to learning so that they can move beyond theconstraints of the Japanese high school system that, inevitably, focuses on memorization andrepetition, towards a different approach that encourages critical thinking skills. In particular,
I believe that teachers are able, through their pedagogic practices, to set an example that thestudents will follow in order to develop their own deep approach to learning.

A deep approach embraces a holistic view of learning, a view inspired by two humanistic
educators, Caleb Gattegno and Jennybelle Rardin. Their philosophies of life and education
concurred with those of Kolb (1984) who states that holistic learning is "a process of adaptation
to the world, involving integrated functioning of the total organism, thinking, feeling,
perceiving and behaving" (p.30).
Earl Stevick (1990), who worked at length with both Gattegno and Curran, perceivescommon strains in their respective approaches:
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Developing learner and teacher autonomy. . .

•Each emphasizes some uniquely human attributes•

Each affirms and promotes human freedom•

Each contributes in some way to the human dignity of the learner (p.131).

Journals are in keeping with this philosophy of holistic, student-centered learning. Moon
(1999) posits that journals facilitate:•

Metacognitive awareness•Critical review•

Development of theory from practiceSelf-development

Learning to resolve uncertainty or to reach decisions
Learning that brings about empowerment or emancipation (p.23).
Ultimately, as Wilson-Medhurst (2005) writes,"[Reflective writing] allows students todevelop an understanding of descriptive approaches to writing...and to provide evidence of a'deep approach' to learning" (p. 91). Given the "inner silence" of the non-judgmental roles thatjournal writing allows, the reflection process empowers learners, and grants them time andspace.

THE ROLES PLAYED BY MIC LEARNER JOURNALSOne of my goals was to have student journals support content-based instruction, as wellas language and critical thinking skills. My intention was for students to see the journal asa tutorial, with a supportive teacher there to help. My aim was to encourage the students
to engage in their writing and to express themselves freely. Having said this, there wereoccasionally individuals who lacked study skills and motivation. Under such circumstances,
the structured cycle of journal assignments, and response to teacher feedback, was aimed atstrengthening their participation.

Journal assessment
Some researchers argue that journals and reflective writing should not be assessed on the
grounds that, "[it] is intrusive on personal development or too difficult" (Moon, 1999,p.92).
However, there are arguments for why we need to develop a means of assessment. In fact, Moon
continues:

But assessment does not always mean marking. It can mean 'sitting beside,' acollaborative rather than inspectorial system. Such a system, is a helpful process tolearners and it can bring structure and discipline to the work that might not comeabout in completely unassessed work" (p.93).

As for this project, it was a requirement that journals were submitted within deadlines; they
werethen read, commented on, and returned to the students. Also, the journals were part of thestudents' overall coursework requirements for the classes. General issues raised by the journals
were later addressed in a forum-style class discussion.

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BradleyTO PRAISE OR NOT TO PRAISE?

There is little consensus as to how, when, or even whether to give praise. Caleb Gattegno
withheld praise on the grounds that the learner's awareness of his learning process madeteachers' praise superfluous. Shakti Gattegno (2000) cautions us as teachers against
systematically praising students without criteria. However, I believe that when used effectively,
praise encourages self-esteem and learner development. Brophy (1981) specifies examples ofsuch praise (See MAYA! website for Appendix A).
Double-entry journals

There are a variety of models of double-entry journals. Essentially, a double-entry journalrequires journaling from two perspectives. In the case of this project, journal entries weredivided into an objective section (the facts/content of the class/lecture), and a subjective section(the student's interpretation, opinion, personal experience and associations, etc.). The students
kept the front of their journals for subjective comments, and the back for objective comments.
Students also had the option of writing more after class.
HOW THE JOURNALS WERE INTRODUCED TO STUDENTS:

1. An explanation of the learning journal project was given:"Youare going to keep your class notes and your comments about them in a notebook."
2. Students were invited to share their experience of keeping journals.
3. The notion of objective and subjective was explained, including definitions, at the level ofeach group.
4. Student and teacher samples were distributed.

5. An activity sheet was provided for students to identify and distinguish between objective
and subjective comments, and to justify their classification.
Holistic assessment

Assessment was in accordance with the approach described earlier. For the sake of this study,
holistic writing assessment is defined as follows:

In considering a sample of writing from a holistic perspective, readers do not judge
separately the singular factors—treatment of topic, selection of rhetorical methods,
word choice, grammar and mechanics—thatconstitute a piece of writing. It is this total
impression that is sought in holistic scoring (Elliot, Plata & Zelhart, 1990, p.17).
Furthermore, the following criteria were included:•

Punctual submission•

The quality of discourse, in terms of complete sentences, cohesion, coherence,paragraphing, length, and detail.

•Appropriateness of register•

English fluency and accuracy•

Accuracy of content•

Critical thinking skills

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Creativity and originality
Response to the teacher's previous feedback or questions•

The balance between objectivity and subjectivity

Journal data
I have included data from three journals.
i- Masa wrote:

You said that I should change the words 'will, "can" etc. into "would', and "could when
I used 'the future in the past". I knew this rule, but I forgot that I used the past, so I
made a mistake, I would like to check what I write at next time not to make mistakes

any more. I think mistake is very shameful because this is one of bases of English. And
you rewrote and added some words. I found out that most of what you wrote or added
are articles and prepeositions. These are my weak points. So I would like to continue
studying them and try to reduce mistakes.

My comment to Masa:

Masa, the question of shame, because of your mistakes, is not really relevant tolearning, because we learn THROUGH our mistakes. In other words, if we didn't makemistakes, we wouldn't learn at all. Learning is not about "knowing," it's about being
able to use and using (the language) without thinking. Also, it's probably impossible to"learn" articles and prepositions, but if you NOTICE them, you'll improve your use ofthem. Your English is excellent for an English One student. Please continue to improveon it and make it more excellent! A-A!

My comments on Masa's entry:

Masa showed a regular pattern of self-deprecation, into which he put considerable energy.
By sharing Gattegno's beliefs about language learning (Gattegno, 2000), I offered him thechance to redirect his energy, and to interact with me on a deeper level through our dialogue(Ramsden, 1992). I praised Masa, since, as I previously explained, it was expected, but I ensured
that it was truthful, specific, and therefore meaningful.
5-Jun wrote:

Todaywe, first we discussed Indian money. I understood * many things of Indianmoney. And I studied that the prices of India is very cheap. For example, watchingmovie is that Japanese case is 1500 yen , but Indian case is 30 yen.* / ""I was envious
Indian prices.

My comments to Jun:

*Jun, this >** is a detail. Can you give some details here>f(such as size, colour, symbols,
languages, etc)?

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My comments on Jun's entry:

Jun only engaged minimally with the content. So, I encouraged him to change that habit bygiving details, so that he might better see what he was describing and deepen his approachto learning (Ramsden, 1992). In general, I believe that students like Jun are likely to sufferfrom low self-esteem and to be unaware that learning in school can energize them. They may
be afraid to pay attention out of fear of not being able to grasp or create meaning. I felt thatmy job here was to aid Jun in overcoming this fear. In doing so, I was careful to do so in an
appropriate manner, not appearing, in his case,too motherly. For that reason my choice ofwords, length of sentences and discourse were crucial. However, if the student is unwilling toengage, all I can do is to accept it, although I would keep trying.
7- Chi wrote:

I learned that if we born in Middle Ages, and farmer, we must be a farmer all our life. I
hate this system. I want to choice my job by myself.

My commentto Chi:

Chi, "hate" is an emotional word. You need to be factual, not emotional in academic

writing. You could say for example, "I do not think the feudal system was a fair systembecause people could not change their status even if they wanted to." Please ask about
this next class.

My comments on Chi's entry:

Although I explained the notion of subjective opinions related to the content, I wanted Chi
to grasp the fine distinction that opinions need to be rooted in fact rather than emotion. Asa follow up activity, I asked Chi to read her sentence out loud so that my content teachingpartner, Dr. J. could also assist. Dr. J said students need to analyse content, and in order to do soshould refrain from getting emotional. With his help, Chi analysed the feudal system. As she didso, her need to express hatred dissolved. Instead, she concluded with a more factual comment,"If I had been born in feudal times, I would not have liked it because I would not have had any
choice about my work."
The students'trust

In my comments to the students, I was both literallysilent, since journaling is written, notspoken, and also non-judgmentally "silent"in the sensethat characterizes the approaches ofCurran and Gattegno. In other words, I did not rank or classifytheir work hierarchically orcomparatively. Student feedback showed that this was appreciated and contributed to theirsense of self-esteem, since they saw their work as having deserved to be read and commented
on by a teacher. They were able to develop a trusting relationship, as they showed through their
willingness to communicate with me in their journals.
Feedback, as I have shown, focused on specifics, both in terms of what the learner had written,
and what he or she needed to do to improve. I was vigilant about ensuring that my language
leveland what I said were appropriate. Language appropriateness was guided by my teachingexperience, my observations,and my awareness of the learners as individuals.As a result, I used
simpler language with certain students, and more challenging languagewith others.

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Developing

learner and teacher autonomy.

.

.

As for praise, empirical observation of tertiary students in Japan over 15 years has revealed
that it was expected by students and widely given by teachers, although often in a mindlessway. Yet, my students frequently mentioned the positive influence praise had on them. For thisreason, I included praise in my comments to them. However, to unmotivated students who
were not worthy of praise, I made a descriptive statement such as, "What you have written isclear." There was a tendency for such students to at the very least pay more attention in class.
Participation

It was occasionallynecessary to chase up the odd or remiss student, although participationin the project was almost total, with every student completing entries for practically everyclass. Some students barely described their lecturesand needed regular coaxing to write incomplete sentences. Occasionallyothers complained that journal writing took time, or madenegative comparisons with classes without homework. The majority, however, highlighted
the opportunity for extra practice and characterized the interaction with the teacher as
helpful for their languageskills, criticalthinking and overall learner development. There wasa considerable difference along gender lines, with females, generally, though not exclusively,
producing more extensive and complexjournal entries. There were, however, many students

who, regardless of gender, wrote in depth and detail and applied their criticalthinking tointerpreting the content of their respective course.
Conclusions

In terms of the holistic assessment previously referred to, final class grades (of which thejournals were a part) indicated a range of abilities. Bythat token, the journals allowedeven
weakstudents who "failed"in other courses to find their voices in English and at the very least
recycle, in their own way,the content they were presented with. In the best of cases, students
mentioned that they were able to applywhat they had learned through the journaling to theirother classes "on the coattails of our class."

The journaling project helped me to understand and grant autonomy to my students. At thesame time, it provided me with the basis for a reflective journey, whereby my thought processes
about learning and teaching developed and led to this project. In that respect, I believe I also
became more of an autonomous teacher.

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Critical Reader Responser i

Daragh Hayes

Amanda Bradley's chapter considers the many benefits associated with using classroom journal
writing projects. Improvements in writing fluency and accuracy, metacognitive awareness andcritical thinking skills are all evident in the writing samples provided, as are the opportunities
for the high degree of collective involvement, increased student-teacher scaffolding, rapport
building and trust that the process allows.The notion of "sitting beside" (Moon, 1999,
as quoted in Bradley) student writing and responding in a non-critical manner was also
refreshing. That the author was able to provide corrective feedback while exhibiting care forstudents' affective well-being speaks volumes for the student-teacher relationships she was able
to build.

This project was clearly undertaken with a high degree of democratic validity (Burns, 1999)
in mind, driven as it was by a desire that the outcomes should result in tangible benefits to allparties concerned. Like Marlen Harrison, I was curious whether individual comments wereshared amongst the cohort and what implications this may have had for the journal writing
process and classroom engagement at other levels. My own experience tells me that providing
learners with access to a plurality of classroom views can have a transformative effect on
their language learning beliefs, goal setting, strategy use, and classroom behavior. Reading thechapter I could not help but wonder how the process may have helped individuals "grow fromthe group's expectations" (Murphey, 2003, p. 4).
What intrigued me most about the chapter were the pockets of resistance that the author
describes. Bradley notes that some learners had to be pressured to complete journal entries
on time or that met the expected quality and length. Although the "deep approach" tolearning Bradley advocates is,"... based on an intrinsic motivation or curiosity" (Hart, 2000,
as quoted in Bradley), this intrinsic interest and commitment to study English is not always
a given in Japanese tertiary settings. In the case of one student quoted in the appendices,Jun, a lack of investment in the process was taken as evidence of a lack of learner autonomy.
While undoubtedly not of the type sanctioned by most teachers, it would be remiss not toacknowledge learner non-compliance or disinterest as a form of choice and self-regulation.
In light of the learners' awareness that the instructor was the primary audience for theirwriting, that some used journal entries to challenge classroom norms or expectations wasquite profound. As such, it is worth considering not only how journal writing could be used
to address the pedagogical mismatch that can often exist between the competing views andexpectations of learners and teachers, but also serve to bridge the gap between opposing visionsof how an autonomous learner "should" behave. As such, I am curious what changes learners
may have suggested to the process and how their ideas were accommodated. If a follow-up
study were pursued, it would be interesting to see how the process might evolve were learners
granted more control over both the content and format of their journal writing contributions.

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Developing learner and teacher autonomy.

Critical Reader Response 2

Marlen Harrison"As for myself, by not assessing my students' autonomy as a discreet factor, I freed
myselffrom being a teacher-centered teacher. I did not have to judge the students' workin a strict or prescriptive way or manipulate figures that arbitrarily reflected an abstract
quality. Since I did not need to subordinate myself to such teacher-focused issues, I
was able to notice the creative examples of autonomy that even students with minimal
experience with English achieved through the journaling." Amanda Bradley
Amanda Bradley's exploration of journaling projects at Miyazaki International College(MIC) effectively illustrates how the language learner can use creative expression as a tool fordevelopment and perhaps more importantly, how the language teacher can effectively explore
his or her role as facilitator of student autonomy. At MIC, Amanda employs a journaling
project in which the teacher takes on a more personalized counseling approach to facilitate
learner awareness and development. This connection between instructor and counselor is quite
profound: Having transitioned from a career in mental health counseling to foreign language
teaching, I can most definitely see how the two roles can overlap. Partnering this concept witha holistic, deep approach to learning mirrors the concept of client-centered counseling andeffectively asks the learner to take responsibility for his or her own development.
Amanda discusses that journals are read and written as a kind of conversation or discourse
between student and instructor. This lead me to wonder if students ever exchanged journals
with their peers and if so, how this activity fits in with the current model and what benefits or
drawbacks might arise. Moreover, I'd be interested in learning how much time is involved inreviewing the journals and how the project has been developed or repeated over time: If the
project is to be repeated, what kinds of changes would she make, and why?
As an instructor who assigns email exchange projects in the language classroom, I foundAmanda's description of typical instructor responses (in journals) to be very motivating. I
can see how I could use a similar process to help students with email composition and selfexpression. Whereas in the past I undertook very little reading of student emails, I would feel
comfortable using Amanda's model to help student's reflect on their skills and ideas. Using
the journal to deepen the relationship between student and instructor, while emphasizing
original thought, skill review, and expression, is a concept I'd like to further explore in my own
teaching.

For students in Japan, specifically, journaling can provide a safer, less judgmental approach
to classroom participation, albeit only written. It honors skills that are perhaps consideredsecondary to oral communication, but that maybe a necessary stepping stone to building
confidence in otherwise apprehensive students. When used in a multi-disciplinary approachto skill development,I have no doubt that the journals not only facilitate the learning process
as they're being written, but also serve as a tangible record of progress and exploration of
language skills that students can re-visit for future review.

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