1. Learner Commitment Theory: It Works! Fernando Silva, UPTC autores@trailstoenglish.com

2. The New Language Institute at the UPTC No classes Students attend on a self-selected schedule to follow a study plan. No groups At any time the room is occupied by students of any career and any level. No blackboard, no teacher control. One or more tutors are present at any time to wait on students as they demmand attention.

3. Physical Description The Institute is a large study room for about 80 students with a cafeteria-type arrangement. Students come and go as they wish, and when they come, they do so to study, to seek assistance or to take tests. Students end up learning the same or more than they learn in a traditional classroom.* –How can this happen? –Put an “s” on your list of “T’s”

4. The Nature of Learning Learning is a change in the state of awareness, knowledge or ability of a person. It comes about as a result of his own experience or involvement. Learning can happen without a teacher, and it often doesn’t happen when there is one (constructivism).

5. Teacher Self-Test Are you a conscientious teacher? Do all your students learn everything that you teach in class? Do some of your students learn only part of what you teach? May some of your students learn little or nothing of what you teach in class? Might someone learn what you teach and more without your teaching them? (SDL*)

6. The Nature of Learning Real-life learning is (always) the result of two variables: –Exposure –Engagement (commitment) The teacher is not a necessary variable. School learning should be the result of two variables: –Adequate, carefully selected exposure. –Intensive, carefully encouraged, sustained commitment. The teacher may be a valuable catalyst – or a hindrance.

7. Learner Commitment Theory Can a student learn English on his own? –Can he learn otherwise? –Can he become engaged in a classroom with the teacher using 20, 80 or 100% of the class? The role of the teacher is not to teach –It is to select adequate subsets of English for the students to be optimally exposed. –It is to design and sustain adequate engagement on the part of the student. The Teacher is an accessory to learning, not the VIP.

8. Institute of Languages UPTC: Procedural Description On arrival for the first time the student reads and signs a contract. The contract is binding. It states that the tutors will give him or her a pass when s/he demonstrates a given conduct. The materials contain all the instructions, the contents, and the pass criteria. The students are not “motivated” by the teacher: They are challenged by a course program. They can choose to sink or swim. (Most swim through).

9. Penalty Any learner who refuses to adopt the necessary commitment levels for any given unit and fails to present the established evaluation events will not pass the given unit, and a student who passes fewer than four out of six units fails the level. Most students pass.*

10. Principles Any student can learn anything that s/he sets his mind to. Even English. Learning happens on two necessary and sufficient conditions:l=e 2 –The learner is exposed to the language. –The learner becomes engaged with the learning task. –The learner cannot avoid learning. Not learning is the sole responsibility of the unengaged learner. Corollary: It works.

11. The Episodes Theory An “episode” is a very specific, life-like event that centers on a communicative purpose: describing everyday objects. It takes a lifetime to “learn a language” (6 + 6 + 4 +...), but it takes two weeks to master an episode (+/- 16 hours of student work) Episodes pile up towards proficiency.

12. Theory Fad The “episodes” model is –Task based –Student centered –Self-determined –Communicative –Competence oriented

13. The Episodes Learning Unit Target behaviors (like CEF): 3/10/80 Required input (exposure) –Lexicon –Sentence models –Achievement indicators Required action (engagement) –Study, learn, practice to required level Testing event –Demonstrate required competence

14. Episodes Application “Trails to English” is a secondary school version of this approach that is totally viable in the classroom. (Selling price: $14, Grades 6-11, Susaeta Quito) “ABC English” is the series used by the Institute but is fully applicable in the ESP classroom. (Selling price $8, levels 1-4, UPTC Language Institute)

15. How to reach us: autores@trailstoenglish.com dsusaeta@ide.edu.ec autores@trailstoenglish.com How to reach us: autores@trailstoenglish.com dsusaeta@ide.edu.ec autores@trailstoenglish.com Susaeta Editores Thank you