On the Feasibility and Desirability of Learner Autonomy from Iranian EFL Teachers’ Perspectives

Learner autonomy has been a controversial issue among teachers in general and teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) in particular.  However, it seems that private institutes and state high school EFL teachers’ beliefs about feasibility and desirability of learner autonomy (LA) have not been compared. This study aimed at investigating the feasibility and desirability of learner autonomy from English language teachers’ perspectives.  In doing so, the learner autonomy instrument consisting of feasibility and desirability sections was administered to 120 EFL teachers (sixty high school teachers and sixty language institute teachers). The participants were selected through convenience sampling. The data of the study were analyzed through descriptive and inferential statistics (one sample ttest and Wilcoxon test). The results showed that both private institutes and state high schools EFL teachers have positive perceptions about learner autonomy. However, they do not have the same beliefs about feasibility and desirability of learner autonomy.