Chapter 7. First Steps to Getting Learners Actively Involved in Vocational English Classrooms
Beatrice Spindler and Natasha Janzen Ulbricht
Beatrice Spindler and Natasha Janzen Ulbricht
Abstract
This chapter documents the first steps toward fostering learner autonomy and active participation in vocational English classrooms through small, iterative pedagogical changes. Drawing on classroom-based reflection and ethnographic observation in an integrated vocational training preparation (IBA) programme in Berlin, the chapter explores how adapting Leni Dam’s model of autonomous language learning can support engagement, confidence, and learner agency in highly heterogeneous and often vulnerable learner groups. It focuses on structured lesson phases (Teacher Time, Students’ Time, and Together Time), the use of logbooks, umbrella tasks, peer feedback, and ritualised speaking activities to create predictable yet flexible learning environments. Through classroom vignettes and reflective analysis, the chapter shows how shifting the definition of success from exam performance to individual growth can transform participation, relationships, and classroom atmosphere. While acknowledging contextual challenges and limitations, the chapter demonstrates how autonomy-supportive practices can spark motivation and ownership, even in settings marked by low attendance, diverse proficiency levels, and prior experiences of educational failure.
About the Authors
Beatrice Spindler is a trained chef and a teacher for English as a foreign language and nutrition at the Oberstufenzentrum für Ernährung und Lebensmitteltechnik, a vocational school with a focus on nutrition and food technology in Berlin, Germany. She enjoys exploring new paths in teaching with a focus on learner autonomy, multilingualism, and embodied cognition. Beatrice is always looking for ways to implement academic research and its results into teaching practices which benefit her students.
Natasha Janzen Ulbricht holds a PhD in English Didactics from Freie Universität Berlin and an MA in Applied Linguistics and English Language Teaching from St. Mary’s Twickenham, London. Her research explores the effects of gesture-based teaching methods on different learners. She has trained teachers and taught English as a foreign language in Germany, Zambia, and in the United States. Her research interests include embodied learning, multilingualism and learner autonomy, as well as teaching in difficult circumstances. She completed her doctoral studies in 2024 and has continued working in the same institute at FU Berlin in a postdoc position.
Citation
Spindler, B., & Janzen Ulbricht, N. (2025). First steps to getting learners actively involved in vocational English classrooms. In K. Heim, L. Dam, A. Albrecht, & C. Becker (Eds.), Reforming the foreign language classroom: Empowering learners to take ownership (pp. 152-173). Candlin & Mynard. https://doi.org/10.47908/40/7
This chapter documents the first steps toward fostering learner autonomy and active participation in vocational English classrooms through small, iterative pedagogical changes. Drawing on classroom-based reflection and ethnographic observation in an integrated vocational training preparation (IBA) programme in Berlin, the chapter explores how adapting Leni Dam’s model of autonomous language learning can support engagement, confidence, and learner agency in highly heterogeneous and often vulnerable learner groups. It focuses on structured lesson phases (Teacher Time, Students’ Time, and Together Time), the use of logbooks, umbrella tasks, peer feedback, and ritualised speaking activities to create predictable yet flexible learning environments. Through classroom vignettes and reflective analysis, the chapter shows how shifting the definition of success from exam performance to individual growth can transform participation, relationships, and classroom atmosphere. While acknowledging contextual challenges and limitations, the chapter demonstrates how autonomy-supportive practices can spark motivation and ownership, even in settings marked by low attendance, diverse proficiency levels, and prior experiences of educational failure.
About the Authors
Beatrice Spindler is a trained chef and a teacher for English as a foreign language and nutrition at the Oberstufenzentrum für Ernährung und Lebensmitteltechnik, a vocational school with a focus on nutrition and food technology in Berlin, Germany. She enjoys exploring new paths in teaching with a focus on learner autonomy, multilingualism, and embodied cognition. Beatrice is always looking for ways to implement academic research and its results into teaching practices which benefit her students.
Natasha Janzen Ulbricht holds a PhD in English Didactics from Freie Universität Berlin and an MA in Applied Linguistics and English Language Teaching from St. Mary’s Twickenham, London. Her research explores the effects of gesture-based teaching methods on different learners. She has trained teachers and taught English as a foreign language in Germany, Zambia, and in the United States. Her research interests include embodied learning, multilingualism and learner autonomy, as well as teaching in difficult circumstances. She completed her doctoral studies in 2024 and has continued working in the same institute at FU Berlin in a postdoc position.
Citation
Spindler, B., & Janzen Ulbricht, N. (2025). First steps to getting learners actively involved in vocational English classrooms. In K. Heim, L. Dam, A. Albrecht, & C. Becker (Eds.), Reforming the foreign language classroom: Empowering learners to take ownership (pp. 152-173). Candlin & Mynard. https://doi.org/10.47908/40/7
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Information About the Book
Title: Reforming the Foreign Language Classroom: Empowering Learners to Take Ownership Editors: Katja Heim, Leni Dam, Annika Albrecht, and Carmen Becker Read more... |