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Hi! I’m Thomas Stringer, and this portal has empowering resources for learners, educational practitioners, and researchers on language learner autonomy.

APRIL 2024 FEATURE POST: BEYOND THE ABSTRACTS

This series goes Beyond The Abstracts, featuring behind the scenes conversations with researchers and educational practitioners in language learner autonomy or related fields.

In this Beyond The Abstracts conversation I speak with Lawrie Moore. Lawrie is a US-American lecturer and teacher trainer who has been living in Austria since 1997. Originally from a business background, Lawrie transitioned to teaching in 2008. She teaches mainly ESP and EAP at the tertiary level and is especially interested in encouraging students to collaborate and take responsibility for their learning. She holds a Cambridge CELTA and DELTA and is a CELTA tutor in Vienna, where she enjoys supporting new EFL teachers in creating learner-centered classes. Lawrie is Joint Coordinator of IATEFL’s Learner Autonomy Special Interest Group. She is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of St. Andrews.

In this conversation we cover the multifaceted nature of language learner autonomy, teaching, and teacher-training methodologies, alongside the intricacies of educational practice. We explore Lawrie’s journey into teaching, and how her interest in language learner autonomy organically developed. We also discuss the importance of empathy, teaching that is responsive to learner needs, the interconnectedness of teacher and learner autonomy, pivoting and adaptability, the significance of structured freedom in the learning environment, personalisation, the continuous process of learning and improvement for teachers, the role of collaborative communities in education, among other topics.

This conversation will be essential viewing for anyone with an interest in both the practical aspects of integrating autonomy into language learning and on the broader implications for teaching practices and educational communities. And now, here is my conversation with Lawrie Moore.

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