Learner agency and symbiotic agency with technology in language learning with digital applications

Abstract As language learners are increasingly turning to digital applications to learn, teachers need to develop practices that help learners take charge of their learning with these applications. This is especially important when learners have limited access to practice opportunities in their physical environment, which is often the case when learning a foreign language. To support learners’ agency in their learning with digital applications, this article examines the portfolios of U. S. learners of Finnish. The data come from a portfolio assignment used in the Finnish language classes at a university in the United States, and the data are analyzed using discourse analysis and the nexus analytical concepts of historical body, interaction order, and discourses in place. The findings show that the learners present themselves as active agents who construct their own learning experiences by navigating and creating content in the digital applications. The learners also report sharing symbiotic agency with technology, which functions as an affordance for learning. The learner remains in charge of their own learning even when the application is attributed some agency of its own. The findings can help language teachers create classroom practices that support learner agency.