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The Relationship between Teacher Support and First-Year EFL Students’ Attitudes toward Autonomous Learning: Evidence from a Vietnamese University

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Learner autonomy is widely regarded as a central goal of foreign language education, yet first-year students in Vietnamese higher education frequently enter university with strong habits of teacher dependency formed during exam-oriented secondary schooling. Grounded in Self-Determination Theory, this article examined the relationship between perceived teacher support and attitudes toward autonomous learning among first-year English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students at Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City (IUH). Using an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design, quantitative data were collected from 202 first-year students through a questionnaire measuring three dimensions of attitude (cognitive, affective, behavioral) and three dimensions of teacher support (autonomy support, structure, involvement), followed by semi-structured interviews with 10 participants. Results indicated that students held moderately positive attitudes toward autonomous learning and perceived moderate levels of teacher support, with a strong, statistically significant positive correlation between the two constructs (r = .766, p < .001). Teacher support correlated most strongly with behavioral attitudes (r = .598), followed by affective (r = .565) and cognitive attitudes (r = .546). Qualitative findings converged with the quantitative results, showing that students associated supportive teaching with guided self-discovery rather than direct answers, while consistently identifying the need for more explicit instruction in learning strategies. The findings suggest that teacher support and learner autonomy are complementary rather than opposing forces, and that first-year EFL programs would benefit from embedding explicit strategy instruction within teacher-supportive pedagogy. Implications for EFL pedagogy, teacher training, and future research in non-English-major contexts are discussed.

The Impacts of Computer-Assisted Translation Tools on Learning Autonomy of Students in English Translation Courses

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Computer-assisted translation (CAT) tools have played an important role in professional translation work. Nevertheless, integrating CAT tools in translation training effectively has remained a conundrum in educational institutions. This research investigates the impact of CAT tools on the learning autonomy of English-majored students in translation courses. Several CAT tools were employed in the training process of 64 students majoring in English translation for 10 weeks. The Learner Autonomy Perception Questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data for pre-test and post-test. Qualitative data was also collected from 15 individual interviews. Findings reveal that the integration of CAT tools has positive impacts on components of learner autonomy, including belief about teachers’ role, metacognitive knowledge, metacognitive skills, and freedom, but it has no significant influence on motivation. Furthermore, although CAT tools facilitate opportunities to foster self-confidence, independence of learning and critical thinking skills, they may cause an over-reliance on technology and a lack of creativity and sense of ownership. Accordingly, several teaching implications are drawn in this study.