Emerging Pedagogies in the Middle East: Enhancing Student Autonomy Using Weblogs (Blogs)

Abstract

Students in the Middle East have typically been taught English following traditional, rote learning methods. There has been little time, or little room, within the set curriculum for teachers to enrich their students’ learning experience. However, especially in the UAE, reforms are being implemented to change the way English is being taught. This paper illustrates how student autonomy can be fostered through the use of an on-line web application. The authors argue that weblogs (blogs), which allow students to publish their work on-line and allow for others to comment on the published work, support a new approach to teaching writing. Feedback from a group of students involved in a small study at the Higher Colleges of Technology support the authors’ claims.