CC BY
26It should be noted, however, that the process of FL learning is always individual in nature, therefore attempts to establish some "levels" of language proficiency, manifested, in particular, in such communicative competence as reading, are to a certain extent relative. The possibility of a more accurate determination of the level of students' reading training assumes further improvement in control forms and types.
References:
1. Буран А.Л. Обучение студентов неязыкового вуза профессионально-ориентированному чтению с использованием средств информационных и коммуникационных технологий: автореф. дисс. ... к. п. н. Томск, 2006. 20 с.
2. Гальскова Н.Д. Современная методика обучения иностранному языку: Пособие для учителя. М: АРКТИ-Глосса, 2000. 165 с.
3. Дубских А.И. Интерактивные технологии в процессе обучения иностранному языку // Вопросы лингводидактики и межкультурной коммуникации в контексте современных исследований: сборник научных статей XI Международной научно-практической конференции. Чебоксары, 2019. С. 167-171.
4. Кисель О.В. Инновационные стратегии обучения как средство повышения мотивированности студентов // Актуальные проблемы современного общего и профессионального образования: сборник статей по материалам IV Всероссийской заочной научно-практической конференции. Магнитогорск: Изд-во Магнитогорск. гос. техн. ун-та им. Г.И. Носова, 2019. С. 50-54.
5. Кисель О.В. Обучение чтению на основе профессионально-ориентированных текстов // Актуальные проблемы современной науки, техники и образования:тезисы докладов 77-й международной научно-технической конференции. Магнитогорск: Изд-во Магнитогорск. гос. техн. ун-та им. Г.И. Носова, 2019. С. 380-381.
6. Лингвометодические аспекты профессионально ориентированного обучения иностранным языкам: традиции и инновации: монография / коллектив авторов под ред. В.П. Барбашова, И.И. Климовой, М.В. Мельничук, Л.С. Чикилёва. М.: Финансовый университет, 2014. 240 с.
7. Программа дисциплины «Иностранный язык», рекомендованная Научно-методическим советом по иностранным языкам МОН РФ, 2010.
8. Фоломкина С.К. Обучение чтению на иностранном языке в неязыковом вузе: учебно-методическое пособие. М., 2005. 253 с.
Pedagogy
UDC 378.2
senior teacher Bykova Liliya Marsovna
Minin Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University (Minin University) (Nizhny Novgorod)
AFFORDANCES OF WEB 2.0 TECHNOLOGIES FOR TEACHING SECOND/FOREIGN LANGUAGE
WRITING
Аннотация. В статье рассматриваются технологии веб 2.0, в частности блоги, вики, Google Docs и Facebook, которые наиболее часто используются в обучении и развитии навыков иноязычной письменной речи. Выделены и проанализированы функции данных веб-технологий и рассмотрены возможности их эффективного применения для формирования и совершенствования навыков письменной речи на иностранном языке у студентов высших учебных заведений.
Ключевые слова: возможности технологий веб 2.0, навыки письменной речи, коммуникативные функции, коллаборативное письмо.
Annotation. The article examines the affordances of Web 2.0 technologies and their potential for teaching second/foreign language writing in a variety of higher educational settings. It identifies features and functions of Web 2.0 technologies and presents the ways in which they are effectively harnessed for developing students' writing skills. This article is restricted to an analysis of the most frequently used Web 2.0 technologies employed for teaching writing: blogs, wikis, Google Docs and Facebook.
Keywords: affordances of Web 2.0 technologies, writing skills, communicative features, collaborative writing.
Introduction. Web 2.0 is a platform that delivers constantly updated services people use 'consuming and remixing data from multiple sources, including individual users, while providing their own data and services in a form that allows remixing by others, creating network effects through an 'architecture of participation' to deliver user experiences' [18, p. 17]. Web 2.0 technologies include synchronous and asynchronous tools such as blogs, wikis, podcasts, social networking sites (Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc.), social bookmarking, photo/video sharing platforms, and Google Docs, among other platforms. Due to the multiple affordances of Web 2.0 tools, they are deemed useful for language learning, particularly for developing learners' writing skills [2; 10].
By definition, 'affordance' refers to the properties of an object that allow people to interact with it by performing certain actions [8]. Web 2.0 technologies with their innovative affordances, the most prominent of which are interconnectedness, immediacy and interactivity, offer language learners ample opportunities to communicate in an authentic writing environment generating ideas, creating content and sharing it with a responsive audience. Considering the potential of Web 2.0 technologies for developing students' writing skills, university teachers are incorporating them into their writing instruction. The most frequently used tools are wikis, blogs, Google Docs and Facebook [21].
Statement of basic materials. A wiki, one of the most popular Web 2.0 technologies used in higher education, is a web space where users can create content, add new information, edit and publish it. From the technical perspective, a wiki application is easy to use as it does not require any special web skills. It is not restrictive in terms of time, space and design complexity: users can work on the same text anywhere anytime, embed multimedia files and provide hyperlinks. Due to the editing functions, anyone can modify the content of a wiki page, retain all previous versions of a document and compare the recent and older versions to observe the changes.
However, the fact that the wiki content can be modified by anyone can actually undermine the effectiveness of the application. Some students are negative about their work being changed by others; they tend to take individual
rather than collaborative ownership of the wiki content [5; 13]. Another deficiency of a wiki is that it does not allow simultaneous editing/working; when this occurs, a wiki is locked, causing work disruption.
Yet these minor pitfalls cannot minimise the pedagogical value of a wiki, especially its ability to promote collaboration. The collaborative features of the application allow multiple learners to negotiate throughout the process of writing, from brainstorming ideas and sharing knowledge to composing a piece of work. These are effective strategies for group assignments and projects [11; 22]. Wikis are appropriate spaces to jointly design presentations, create classroom encyclopaedia, group portfolios and annotated bibliographies.
As a publishing tool, a wiki is used to disseminate information and knowledge. Students and teachers can share learning resources in wiki pages and post their comments on the information provided by different users [11].
Overall, the collaborative, editing and sharing functions of a wiki make it one of the most attractive Web 2.0 technologies used in higher education. For students, a wiki platform offers an enhanced opportunity to practice writing in the target language: by simultaneously assuming the roles of reader, critic and editor, learners identify mistakes, offer corrections and approve changes, and by drawing on peers' competence they can practice peer learning; for teachers, the tool is one more way to track the development of students' writing abilities, vary writing activities and create an authentic learning environment [17].
A blog, a short form of weblog, is 'a social networking service and general informational site' consisting of entries arranged in reverse chronological order and regularly updated by its user [2, p. 437]. Many blogs provide news, comments on a particular subject, or function as personal journals/diaries. The content of blogs can be of a different format including text, audio, video and image files, which can be saved and downloaded when needed.
Blogs are widely employed in language learning contexts as an asynchronous publishing and communication tool which enables learners to leave comments, share ideas, explore and discuss new concepts [14; 19]. Sites such as WordPress.com, LiveJournal.com, Googlesites.com and Blogspot.com are often employed as web-based platforms for various writing activities, including stories, reflective journals, topic discussions, home assignments and projects. Blogs are also viewed as authentic platforms where a worldwide audience can virtually meet, interact and access materials [16]. This cross-cultural exchange contributes to language acquisition and writing in particular as communication is mostly text-based.
Summarising the affordances of blogs, Leslie and Murphy are worth quoting at length:
... one general purpose for blogging may be to support, facilitate, model, and increase opportunities for social, peer and group interaction, communication, presence, feedback, networking learning experiences, and getting to know each other.
. an additional purpose for blogging may be to support, contribute to, and provide opportunities or means for collaborative, cooperative and community-centered sharing, building, contributing, outlining and asserting knowledge, ideas, opinions, different viewpoints, interpretations, perspectives and common goals [12, p. 4].
Blogs do not require comprehensive computer skills to construct and use them; frequent use of blogs could even enhance students' digital literacy. However, blogging software platforms do have a number of flaws. Lin points to the slow upload speed of the content with images and a time lapse between uploading and student feedback [14]. Moreover, some features lack flexibility. For example, the comment section takes the form of a small window, which students who have low typing speed might find inconvenient. In addition, blogs, in contrast to wikis, only allow bloggers to give their contributions and do not permit the editing of the blog or the contributors' posts.
Campbell distinguished three types of blogs utilised in a language class [9]. The tutor blog, which is managed by the tutor/instructor, provides students with a variety of learning resources and enables online interaction through comments and posts. Information about the students, teaching materials and links to electronic resources which can be recommended to students for use during self-study are also kept in the tutor's blog.
The learner blog is run by students and may be individually owned or co-owned by a group of students. They form a blog platform which facilitates their writing practice, research work, personal expression, exchange of ideas and research. Finally, the class blog is managed by the entire class operating as a unit. Students pass messages through posts, work together on language learning projects, create a publishing group and also engage other learners (local, regional and international) in exchange activities [7].
Through blogs, especially those individually owned, students gain a sense of ownership and autonomy. They decide on the pace, time and sequence of learning. They can also get first-hand responses from native speakers of the target language, thereby gaining authentic learning experiences [17]. All the affordances mentioned here show that blogs can serve as learning spaces where students can practice their writing skills.
Google Docs, officially introduced in 2009, is an online document sharing and versioning tool. Its features overlap with those of a wiki and blog, enabling users to create, edit, store and share a written document. Google Docs facilitates collaboration and allows users to work simultaneously on a common task, view changes in real time and receive instant feedback from their teacher and peers. The forum posts and comments feature of Google Docs guide users in writing and revising their texts. Learners can contribute to the revision thread by suggesting correct spellings, punctuation, semantic features and cohesive devices [15]. Teachers also use the revision history maintained in Google Docs to follow the progress of their students' writing by comparing the uploaded document versions. The tool is user-friendly and does not pose technological challenges, but it does require an Internet connection as it cannot be used offline. In sum, the collaborative, participatory and editing features of Google Docs make it a useful tool for fostering students' writing.
Facebook, with its properties of distributing and obtaining information crossing time and location boundaries, promoting communication and networking people around the globe, has become the world's most popular social networking site (SNS) [20]. It has over two billion active users as of December 2018. Registered users can create private or public profiles, articulate friendship links, send/receive messages and notifications of their friends' activities, upload and share photos and multimedia, view other users' pages, write on virtual message boards and create/join online communities.
Among the affordances Facebook provides are persistence and visibility as online communication is not restricted to time and space, and it is thus durable and can be viewed by a potential audience. Being a massive communication and media literacy channel that is able to promote daily communication, Facebook meets the connectivity demands many students expect; it is considered an authentic learning environment where language learners can contact their peers, instructors and native speakers of different languages to develop language competence [3]. Additionally, Facebook, with its features such as feed, online games and chat, encourages people to interact with other users across the world in a language they find comfortable.
The educational impact of Facebook on second/foreign students' writing is under-researched despite its growing application in the context of second/foreign learning and teaching [6]. The very concept of Facebook, based as it is on community building, social networking and interpersonal relationships, along with its unique features for providing constructive experiences, have made it a preferred platform for language learning and teaching. Instructors of language courses can create 'groups' on Facebook to which their students can be invited. As group administrators, they can restrict membership to only registered students. As such, the use of this strategy requires students to have an individual Facebook account. In the group, the teacher creates content to which students respond to, presents their views, discusses emerging issues on the target language, shares new ideas and material related to the target language and delivers individual or group feedback on their writing tasks [1]. Teachers also motivate learners to actively use Facebook by awarding extra points for posts that receive many comments and 'likes' from peers [6]. With the application 'Courses', students or instructors can create a course and invite students from other universities to join, thus providing more opportunities for collaboration and knowledge exchange [4]. Some tertiary institutions offering language courses have embedded Facebook tasks in the curriculum and students' participation is formally assessed and scored.
A certain degree of scepticism and resistance to the incorporation of Facebook in the writing classroom exists among faculty members, stemming from their belief that SNSs are for personal and social use; they are also concerned about privacy and security issues that may arise when using Facebook. Despite this reserved attitude to Facebook and its potential for enhancing learning, the number of educational institutions that integrate Facebook into second/foreign curricular is steadily increasing.
Conclusions. This article has presented the findings obtained through the analysis of the affordances of Web 2.0 technologies such as wikis, blogs, Google Docs and Facebook. Due to the sharing, updating, editing, commenting and publishing functions that technologies offer, teachers and learners can make the process of writing more communicative, collaborative and creative. Web 2.0 tools can expand learning beyond the traditional classroom, allowing students to practice their writing skills regardless of time and location, both individually and in groups. Technology can create a multifaceted learning environment where students, by assuming different roles, are afforded ample opportunities to engage in a variety of writing activities, thereby improving their writing competence.
References:
1. Ahmed, M.A. Using Facebook to develop grammar discussion and writing skills in English as a foreign language for university students // Sino-US English Teaching. - 2016. - Vol. 13, No. 12. - Pp. 932-952.
2. Alkhataba, E.H.A., Abdul-Hamid S., Ibrahim B. Technology-Supported Online Writing: An Overview of Six Major Web 2.0 Tools for Collaborative-Online Writing // Ssrn. - 2018. - Vol. 9, No. 1. - Pp. 433-446.
3. Al-Tamimi, M.F., Al-Khawaldeh, A.H., & Mohammad, H.I. The effect of using Facebook on improving English language writing skills and vocabulary enrichment among University of Jordan sophomore students // Journal of Social Sciences - 2018. - Vol. 7, No. 3. - Pp. 187-214.
4. Blattner, G., & Fiori, M. Facebook in the language classroom: Promises and possibilities // International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning. - 2009. - Vol. 6, No 1. - Pp. 17-28.
5. Castañeda, D.A. The Effects of Instruction Enhanced by Video/Photo Blogs and Wikis on Learning the Distinctions of the Spanish Preterite and Imperfect // Foreign Lang. Ann. - 2011. - Vol. 44, No. 4. - Pp. 692-711.
6. Dizon, G.A comparative study of Facebook vs. paper-and-pencil writing to improve L2 writing skills // Computer Assisted Language Learning. - 2016. - Vol. 29, No. 8. - Pp. 1249-1258.
7. Flores, J.F.F. Using the web 2.0 to enhance the teaching and learning experience in the ESL classroom // Revista Educado, Cultura e Sociedade. - 2015. -Vol. 5, No. 2. - Pp. 108-120.
8. Gaver, W.W. Technology affordances // Proc. SIGCHI Conf. Hum. factors Comput. Syst. Reach. through Technol. - 1991. - Pp. 79-84.
9. Godwin-Jones R. Blogs and wikis: Environments for online collaboration // Language learning & technology. - 2003. - Vol. 7, No. 2. - Pp. 12-16.
10. Kessler, G., Bikowski, D., Boggs, J. Collaborative writing among second language learners in academic Web-based projects // Lang. Learn. Technol. - 2012. -Vol. 16, No. 1. - Pp. 91-109.
11. King, B.W. Wikipedia writing as praxis: Computer-mediated socialization of second-language writers // Language Learning & Technology. - 2015. - Vol. 19, No 3. - Pp. 106-123.
12. Leslie, P.H., & Murphy, E. Post-secondary students' purposes for blogging // The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning. -2008. - Vol. 9, No. 3. - Pp. 1-17.
13. Li, M., & Zhu, W. Good or bad collaborative wiki writing: Exploring links between group interactions and writing products // Journal of Second Language Writing. - 2017. - Pp. 38-53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2017.01.003
14. Lin, M. The untold story: A language teacher's experience in a blog-assisted writing classroom // International Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences. - 2017. - Vol. 9, No. 5. - Pp. 1-6.
15. Liu, S.H., & Lan, Y. Social Constructivist Approach to Web-Based EFL Learning: Collaboration, Motivation, and Perception on the Use of Google Docs // International Forum of Educational Technology & Society. - 2016. - Vol. 19, No 1. - Pp. 171-186.
16. Mabuan, R.A. Using Blogs in Teaching Tertiary ESL Writing // Journal of English Education. - 2018. -Vol. 6, No. 2. - Pp. 1-10. https://doi.org/10.25134/erjee.v6i2.1238
17. Mashrah, H.T. Blending Web 2.0 Technologies with Developing of Writing Skills in ESL Classroom: Some Insights // International Journal of English Language. - 2017. - Vol. 5, No 2. - Pp. 10-15.
18. Pham, V.P.H., & Usaha, S. Blog-based peer response for L2 writing revision // Computer Assisted Language Learning - 2016. - Vol. 29, No 4. - Pp. 724-748.
19. O'Reilly, T. What is Web 2.0: Design patterns and business models for the next generation of software // Communications & strategies. - 2007. - Vol. 1, No. 1. - Pp. 17-37.
20. Prichard, C. Training L2 Learners to Use Facebook Appropriately and Effectively // CALICO Journal. -2013. - Vol. 30, No. 2. - Pp. 204-225. https://doi.org/10.11139/cj.30.2.204-225
21. Reinhardt, J. Social media in second and foreign language teaching and learning: Blogs, wikis, and social networking // Language Teaching. - 2019. - Vol. 52, No 1. - Pp. 1-39. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444818000356
22. Wang, Y.C. Promoting collaborative writing through wikis: a new approach for advancing innovative and active learning in an ESP context // Computer Assisted Language Learning. - 2015. - Vol. 28, No. 6. - Pp. 499-512. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2014.881386
