Research agenda for supporting learners and educators in developing language learner autonomy

Abstract

In this chapter, the author reflects on the ideas in this volume, that have explored some of the theoretical foundations, philosophical underpinnings, practical applications as well as evaluations of learner autonomy and learner autonomy spaces. In the editors’ view, the findings that are presented throughout the chapters exemplify the ‘social turn’ in researching learner autonomy development and second language acquisition, in which the social, interactive and co-dependent nature of the concept has increasingly come to the foreground (cf. Little, Dam, & Legenhausen, 2017; Peeters & Ludwig, 2017; Toohey & Norton, 2003). This social turn also forms the backbone of the research agenda that is presented in this section, with questions about the context of learning, the different frames in which autonomy can develop and how we define ‘value’ in learning. By making suggestions for how to start answering these questions, this chapter aims to outline a pathway for future research in the field of learner autonomy.