Reasons for establishing the SALC
The SALC was established in 1997. It aims to provide students
with opportunities to practice their English skills outside the
classroom in accord with their abilities, interests, and needs. It also
aims to promote students’ autonomous language-learning skills so that
they can continue using their skills in their further studies and their
careers.
Size
of SALC:
SALC 1 (146m2), SALC 2 (80m2), SALC 3 (64m2)
and SALC 4 (198m2)
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Staffing
and management
Self-access
manager:
This post is filled by a lecturer in the Language Institute. His duties
include planning the use of the center in coordination with the Deputy
Director for Academic Affairs and SALC committee, making sure everything
runs smoothly, coordinating other lecturers’ activities related to
self-access learning, budgeting in coordination with the Deputy Director
for Administrative Affairs, sorting out problems and trouble shooting,
and looking for ways to improve the center.
Twenty
lecturers:
The Language Institute lecturers form committees in charge of each
section of the center, selecting and producing materials, and organizing
activities to promote the center and self-access learning. They also
take turns to sit in the center for three hours per week to provide
consultation in both language and learning strategies to students.
One
clerical person:
The center has one clerical person who takes care of all the paperwork,
the duplication of materials, and checking the use of materials.
Two
technical staff:
A technician and computer officer are based in the sound lab and
computer lab.
One
janitor:
The janitor’s duties are to do the cleaning and take care of users’
belongings at the bag-check counter.
The SALC operates following a combination of both Formal and
Democratic models of management. It is formal in that positions of
authority such as a self-access manager and a head of each committee are
established. The manager is accountable for resources and activities of
the center and reports all the projects and activities to a more senior
level (the Deputy Director for Administrative Affairs and the Director
of the Language Institute) for consideration and approval. However, it
is democratic in that any of the lecturers in the institute can
contribute materials or ideas for activities for self-access learning.
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Use
of SALC:
All of the 3,000 students (mostly first–year students) who
enroll in Fundamental English courses (English I, II and III) are
required to attend the SALC. They are introduced to the SALC as part of
those fundamental courses. They are required to practice their English
skills through various media and materials at least five times per
semester, write reports to record and reflect on their learning
experience (forms are provided in the SALC), compile those reports to
form a portfolio and submit the compilation to their teachers at the end
of the semester in order to obtain some points towards their final mark
in the English courses they are taking. In addition, students are
required to attend at least one of the self-access learning activities
organized by lecturers. The examples of those activities are Buddhist
exhibitions, sermons in English, Father’s Day exhibitions, spelling
bees, karaoke contests, workshops on speechmaking, group discussion,
Valentine’s Day fairs, celebrity talks, workshops on using a computer
for language learning, etc.
Physical
settings and resources:
The SALC is located in the Audio-Visual Center of Rangsit campus.
The SALC is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. During the semester
and at those times, a lecturer is available to provide a consultation
service. The SALC consists of four separate rooms: SALC 1, SALC 2, SALC
3, and SALC 4.
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SALC
1
(see Figure 1) can accommodate 80 users. This room is divided into three
sections as follows:
·
Reading
section
where students can practice their reading skills through reading
exercises (both Institute-developed and commercially-produced) which are
graded according to levels of difficulty into beginning, intermediate,
and advanced, or English I, II and III; a reading-skill development
package (SRA); and a wide variety of English magazines and newspapers.
·
Writing
section
where students can practice their writing skills through writing
exercises (both Institute-developed and commercially-produced) graded in
the same way as the reading materials.
·
Listening
section for special students
This section mainly aims to provide listening exercises to students who
have difficulties in going to the sound lab which is on the second floor
of the center.
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SALC
2
(see Figure 2) is equipped with
47 computers with headsets and microphones. Students can practice their
English skills through using CD-ROMs and the Internet. This room is also
open for lecturers to bring their students here during their scheduled
class hours.
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SALC
3
(see Figure 3) is divided into 3 sections.
·
Video
section:
There are 24 VCRs and TVs. Students can relax by watching movies of
their choice from more than 400 movies available and they can also
practice English through commercially-produced language-learning videos
such as Follow Me, Family Album U.S.A., Hello America, Look Ahead, etc.
·
Games
section:
This section can accommodate 12 users. Students can enjoy
English-practice games like Scrabble, Rich Game, Crossword, Australia
Card Game, 20 Questions, Oxford Game, Wordy, Word Up, The Turn, and
Speller Game.
·
Karaoke
section:
This section contains a CD player and a TV. It can accommodate 4
students at a time.
·
Speaking section:
This section is decorated in a living-room style. It is designed for
students to practice speaking using commercially-produced exercises.
Students can practice alone, in pairs, or in groups. Besides, the
area can be used for other activities such as group discussions, workshops
on speechmaking, etc.
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SALC
4 (see Figure 4) is divided into two sections.
·
Listening section:
There are 62 listening booths with headsets. Students can practice their
listening skills from exercises commercially produced, from song cassettes,
or from cable TV programs.
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