Abstract

In recent years, teaching methods in English Language Teaching have shifted from teacher-centered to learner-centered approach where learner independence being the main focus of effective teaching practice. Self-regulated learning, as defined by Holec (1981), is fostering the learner's responsibility, self-management, and decision making over their own learning. The concept of learner autonomy (LA), or the capacity of students to progressively manage their own learning processes, has been a fundamental construct of education for decades. Autonomy features prominently in modern educational frameworks due to the shift from traditional and teacher-centered styles to more sophisticated and student-focused approaches (Teng, 2021; Little, 2020). The new approach is important, but many teachers struggle to implement autonomy-supportive teaching because of traditions, curriculum, and lack of professional development training. Teacher training workshops, for example, do not have a long-term impact. Mentoring, on the other hand, has been shown to be a more effective approach for professional development because it provides teachers with individualized focus, reflective practice, and application of theory to practice. While there is global evidence support for these practices, there is very little evidence in the context of EFL in Iran where professional development is mostly workshop-based.

This study examined the impact of mentoring on the perceptions and practice of Iranian EFL teachers regarding learner autonomy and on their classroom practices. From a language institute, 40 teachers were selected through purposeful sampling and were assigned to two groups: an experimental one of 20 teachers who were mentored, and a control one of 20 teachers who were not mentored. They were selected on the basis of lesson planning, presentation and the degree of lesson objectives accomplished as assessed by the head teachers. Members of the experimental group attended mentoring on four separate occasions for 30 minutes within a 30-day period, post lesson observations, focusing on the concept of autonomy, strategy effectiveness, and classroom applications. The control group continued their lessons the way they usually did. The researchers administered the Borg and Al-Busaidi’s (2012) Learner Autonomy Questionnaire, a validated classroom observation checklist, and semi-structured interviews with 10 teachers from the experimental group to collect the data of this study. Quantitative records were scrutinized using mixed ANOVA, and ideographic thematic coding was employed for the interview transcripts.

The outcome showed that the mentored teachers had improved considerably in several areas. Their mean perception scores increased from 111.55 111.55 to 148.40 148.40 while the control group observed no changes at all. Also, the classroom practice scores in the experimental group improved from 64.85 to 87.30, while the control group scores did not change. The ANOVA results indicated large, predominant main effects of time as well as important interaction effects, with very large effect sizes for both perceptions (η² = .97) and classroom practices (η² = .91- .92). These results indicate that the growth in the teacher’s beliefs and behaviors were large and quantifiable. This was possible due to the mentorship provided.

More detailed insight came from the interview data. In the pre-mentoring phase, teachers described the concept of autonomy as rather vague, likening it to independent reading or doing homework without assistance. The importance of autonomy was equally shallow, and the strategies they proposed devolved to assigning extra work or minimal encouraging notetaking. In the post-mentoring phase, these views became richer and more elaborate. Responsibilities, goals, learner choice, and self-monitoring became cornerstones of how teachers described the new concept of autonomy. They became aware of its importance for promoting long-term learning, intrinsic motivation, and critical thinking. They also reported using a wider range of strategies: reflective journals, self-assessment, learner goal setting, and projects that extended beyond the classroom walls. Challenges also went redefined: while pre-mentoring accounts put the blame of passivity and lack of motivation on the students, in post-mentoring accounts the large and heavy structured curriculum coupled with large classes was seen as a powerful barrier, along with gradual responsibility transfer, differentiated instruction, and classroom management as solutions. Teachers started to position themselves as active agents capable of designing micro-moments of autonomy even within exam-oriented systems.

With all of the quantitative and qualitative data and outcomes in mind, the mentoring improved teachers’ grasp of the idea of nurturing autonomy and empowered them to put it into practice in their classrooms. The integration of dialogue, feedback, and application of the ideas in teaching practice constructed the gap between the theory and the reality, allowing teachers to transform the values and apply new models. The changes that were seen in the teachers aligned with the theory of experiential learning because of the components of reflection and action, and with sociocultural frameworks that regard autonomy as first externally socialized and later internalized. Above all, mentoring gave teachers the idea to shift their focus to the problem and analyze it critically and solve it creatively.

The findings from the research highlight the fact that even a short, structured mentoring program can result in remarkable changes on the cognitive and behavioral level of EFL teachers. It strongly supports the idea that mentoring, especially in Iran where the integration of autonomy into the culture of the classroom has not fully taken place, can serve as a substitute or addition to regular teacher training courses. Although the research is limited by the small sample size and focuses on a single institution, the size of the effects suggests that mentoring should have a more prominent role in policy regarding teacher development. Further research should investigate how mentoring influences teachers and the learners and examine the impact of mentoring over a longer period of time.

The findings reflect that mentoring transformed views and practices of EFL teachers in Iran with regards to learner autonomy. It allowed teachers to shift from abstract endorsement of learner autonomy to practical and deep-seated classroom applications as a result of integrating reflective dialogue, situated feedback, and contextually, appropriate strategies. These findings add to the growing body of literature that privileges mentoring as a key mechanism for professional advancement within the field of ELT and draws attention to the need to carve out their potential for fostering learners able to continue their language growth autonomy beyond classroom walls.