Individual work – extensive reading outside the classroom

Abstract

Good communicative competence in English cannot be developed only in the classroom. In the middle of the 20th century, modern-day linguists tossed about different theories on how language is learned (and thus how it should be taught). Linguists, like Stephen Krashen and Noam Chomsky, broke onto the scene with the Language Acquisition Theory (LAT). A part of LAT suggests that language learners best learn from useful and communicative input. Learner autonomy has been a major area of interest in foreign language teaching for some 30 years. It improves the quality of language learning, promotes the principles of democratic societies, and prepares individuals for life-long learning. This is a human right, and it allows learners to make the best use of learning opportunities in and out of the classroom. The purpose of our project is to develop students` reading competences and namely improve their autonomy in the process of English language learning. Extensive reading was selected as a method of improving students` vocabulary, grammar, and speaking skills.