Fostering autonomy: implementing change in teachers' education.

Few teachers will disagree with the importance of helping language learners become more autonomous, but in spite of widespread agreement on the importance of autonomy and independence, there remains a good deal of uncertainty about their application to language education. For instance, some people believe that autonomy is something that teachers do to their learners; in other words that it is a new methodology. This is not true, but it is not entirely false either, for learners are unlikely to become autonomous without active encouragement from their teachers. Therefore the development of learner autonomy will depend crucially on the initiatives teachers take. The question is, what kinds of initiatives should teachers take? First of all it is necessary for teachers' attitudes to learning and teaching to change.