Self-Regulated Learning: A Response to Language

Self-Regulated Learning: A Response to Language-Teacher Education in Colombia

Liliana Cuesta Medina Carl Edlund Anderson Jermaine McDougald Universidad de La Sabana, Colombia

Introduction

'Ihe need to better prepare students to face the kinds of chal1' Il K'S they will encounter in the real world, outside the classroom,

t ome an increasing concern for educators, as that world itself • •tn s to change ever more rapidly. Concomitantly, the need to prepare I 'II ·hers themselves-and thus, likewise, teacher educators-to meet Ih n ed represents another, perhaps less well recognized, but polt llllu Uy more significant challenge. Demands for a response to the 11 Ill and economic processes related to globalization-including tl •v •lopments in technology, science, communication, knowledge, and 11 1I patterns (Coyle, Hood, & Marsh, 2010)-have forced education 111 I Industry professionals alike to rethink the role of their countries' 1lu · tlional systems.Thus, they are seeking new approaches to prepare I tl t' ll , ,. to succeed in an increasingly multilingual, multicultural lnow l dge-based society and economy that pervade local as well as lnh tl ontexts (J. Knight & de Wit, 1995; McDougald, 2015; Saeed, / ulli ] ll r, Ata, & Rathore, 2015; Wang & Seddon, 2014). 'I'o nsure that academic programs and curricula-at all levels-are tlj tbl f providing the best possible preparation for contemporary I 11I' ll ' r , it is necessary to address tb way pre-service teachers are p1 •pl\ r d to face the rea litie and mpl xities of diverse classrooms hot

Liliana Cuesta Medina, Carl Edlund Anderson & Jermaine McDougald

(Hutchinson, 2013). They will also need to face the (often unpredictable) realities and complexities their learners will eventually face when they leave those classrooms. Hutchinson (2013) argues that, at the very least, this preparation needs to provide critical knowledge and skills. However, that preparation should also provide a "dialogue between professionals in schools and in teacher education programs [as] a necessary first step toward narrowing the gap between the skill set that teacher education currently imparts to teachers and the skills educators need in today's schools" (p. 29). Many educational researchers have come to broadly agree on key approaches and objectives for contemporary education at primary and secondary (as well as tertiary) levels (see, for example, discusssion and summaries in Ripley, 2013; Sahlberg, 2014; Wagner, 2008, 2012) . Nonetheless, their effective implementation is complicated since many curricula are enmeshed in a vast web of nation-/state-wide requirements, certifications, and metrics. Questionable governmental reform policies-possibly well-intentioned, but driven more by politics than by the lessons of educational research-provide another obstacle to effective educational improvements (Sahlberg, 2011). Educational institutions, not least the higher education institutions (HErs) that provide training and professional development for teachers, find themselves in a highly competitive and globalized environment (Bagley & Portnoi, 2014) in which they must increasingly rethink how to design and deliver their programs and ensure the support and services of a specialized teaching and research faculty needed. Such challenges directly affect the structure of the system supply-and-demand in higher education (Youssef, 2014). The kinds of changes appropriate to HErs and, those affecting teacher training have been discussed for over a decade (Altbach, 1998; Morey, 2004; Pinheiro, 2011), both in Colombia and many other countries. Nevertheless, despite substantial efforts in recent decades aimed at reforming the national educational system, including additional language education (McDougald, 2015), only relatively minimal differences are observable in the field (Usma, 2009; Usma Wilches, 2009). Overall, there remains a need for a more integrated approach th at prepares Colombian learners not only with th kn wledge and ski lls

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gulated Learning : A Response to Language-Teacher Education In Colombia

lil't'd ·d to compete in a globalized, knowledge-driven economy but to jtlll ll ·ipate, locally and internationally, as informed and constructive 1Ill/ ·ns of the world (Casey & Brugha, 2005; Mitchell, 2001). This, in 11 1111, implies a need for teachers capable of guiding that preparation. Colo mbian HEIS , in particular, have started to pay increased atIl lilio n to the development of critical thinking and lifelong learning, lll llhas izing the role of reflection as essential in becoming an effective 11 oHIt ' r who can continue learning from one's own learners, tutors, 11d p crs (Fandifi.o, 2013). Presently, many Colombian teacher edu' •lilt In programs include space for concepts related to autonomy and lll ltt tto mous (or self-directed) learning, as well as metacognitive skills. 11 HIll gst the latter, self-regulation and the capacity for self-regulated It oll'll lng (S RL) have become widely recognized in educational research lllt'lll l u re as critical for both learners and their teachers. Self-Regulation and Self-Regulated Learning (sRL)

l{csearch on self-regulation (sR), understood broadly as the ability 111 us · metacognitive knowledge strategically to achieve cognitive jtllds, emerged from the pioneering work of Bandura (1986), Zim1111'1' 111