Using the Internet to Promote Business Learners’ Autonomy in Vietnam

Abstract

In Vietnam, despite the widespread use of computers and the Internet in the educational settings, little attention has been paid to the role of the Internet in promoting students’ autonomy. Particularly, in the author’s real teaching context at Thuong Mai University (TMU), there exists a serious problem relating to students’ lack of independency in language learning. The study, therefore, was implemented to investigate the effectiveness of the Internet use in promoting business learners’ autonomy and improving their learning skill. To fulfill the study, questionnaires and interviews were conducted to 200 third-year students and 10 teachers of English at TMU respectively. The qualitative approach was adopted to reveal the significant findings of the descriptive case study on the learners’ positive attitudes and awareness of their learning autonomy through the popularity yet ineffective use of the Internet use but the ineffective use of the Internet in improving English study and motivation, what and how teachers and learners do to promote learners’ autonomy in language learning. The study, consequently, came up with some effective pedagogical implications that may help teachers recognize the significant role of the Internet in enhancing learners’ autonomy inside and outside the class.