Abstract

The CercleS version of the European Language Portfolio (ELP) has been used with language degree students at the University of Padova since the academic year 2002–2003. The courses into which it is embedded are generally blended: lessons take place in traditional classrooms and in the multimedia language laboratory, and students work online in their own time. One of the ELP-related activities which has been introduced over the years is the online learner diary: students write diary entries in which they reflect on their language learning, setting themselves short-term goals and commenting on goals achieved. The diary entries are written in the target language, in this case English. This article explores diary entries written during the academic year 2008–2009. At the start of the year most students were totally unfamiliar with both the ELP and the concept of diary writing as a pedagogic tool. The aim of the study was: to investigate how learners use the ELP descriptors in formulating their reflections; to understand how the skill of reflection may develop during a year of study; and to see if there are any differences in the approach to the task according to the level of language competence of the learner.