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9проелемы современного осрпзоопнип
V.I. Yaremenko
CHOICES AND CHALLENGES OF THE USE OF INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY IN TRAINING UNIVERSITY STUDENTS
Keywords: Information computer technology, ICT, computer-aided learning/teaching, the State Educational standard, interactional activities, student's motivation.
Abstract: The paper gives a short general overview of the state-of-the art of ICT use in the process of teaching a foreign language at a technical university. The possible ways and examples of practical use of information technology are given with the emphasis of their positive effects on the results achieved in the process of teaching/learning. Also presented are the challenges to be faced both on the part of the learners and the teachers.
Ключевые слова: Информационные компьютерные технологии, ИКТ, обучение с использованием компьютера, Федеральный государственный образовательный стандарт, интерактивные формы обучения, мотивация студентов.
Аннотация: В статье дается краткий обзор состояния дел в области использования информационных компьютерных технологий в процессе преподавания иностранного языка в техническом вузе. Описываются возможные способы и приводятся примеры практического применения ИКТ с акцентом на их положительной роли в повышении эффективности преподавания и изучения иностранного языка. Также затрагиваются некоторые возможные проблемы, с которыми сталкиваются как студенты, так и преподаватели в процессе применения информационных компьютерных технологий.
The wide spread of Information Computer Technology (ICT) in the forms of the Internet, email, databases, CDs, and DVD's made them an integral part of the theory and practice of teaching and learning, giving rise to new approaches of individualized and cooperative learning and new types of tasks, exercises and materials for study. There was a period of time when enthusiasts of information technology in English language learning and teaching believed that new electronic media would soon make redundant the language teachers who relied on grammar-translation method or audio-visual approach, and also the teachers unwilling to adopt learner-centered approaches when the student becomes increasingly "interactive" and more responsible for his own advancement. (5)
However, hardly a decade later (since1990s) it has become evident that the availability and easy access to the massive flood of authentic language and cultural materials called for the necessity of developing new technologies of teaching that would not only embed the Internet facilities and email communication into the classroom environment, but also create socially, psychologically and emotionally friendly atmospheres for both learners and teachers. The latter has become especially acute in the light of the requirements of the latest State Educational standard.
The state-of-art in terms of the ICT impact on the teaching/learning process is encouraging: the classroom activities and the process of independent study of the students are well provided with up-to-date materials. The huge Internet resources allow for the immediate downloading of the latest news, information about life of the youth, newspaper and magazine articles, necessary training aids, etc. Students can take part in testing, competitions, and contests held on the Internet, corresponding with contemporaries from other countries or participating in chats, videoconferences and many other activities. Team work on the joint projects of mutual interest has become highly popular within the scope of students' majors when Russian students collaborate with their partners from foreign universities. In this case, the Internet can serve as a means of experiencing other cultures when students virtually travel to other countries to investigate new lifestyles and compare them with their national one. The virtual learning environment is stimulating, immersive and challenging since the students have the opportunity to learn in real time.
Integration of the Internet resources into the educational process greatly contributes to the solution of a number of didactic problems in lessons, namely:
-to develop the most important single skill when studying a foreign language at a technical University - reading - in its numerous variations: exploratory reading, as in skimming through the series of the texts on a given subject matter; revision reading, in order to confirm knowledge; reading in
order to search for specific information; and critical reading, by examining, comparing and digesting on-line materials or Internet resources.
-to enlarge both active and passive vocabulary through reading and translating.
-to improve speaking skills in the form of monologue and dialogue when working on topics under
study, relying on information technology as a learning tool.
-to get acquainted with the cultural knowledge including speech etiquette, especially speech behavior of various people in different settings marked by traditions of the country of the foreign lan-guage.(1)
The above mentioned and some other aspects of computer-aided learning/teaching require serious considerations on the part of the teacher to adjust teaching materials to be better suited for acquisition both in the classroom environment and for self-study at home.
As the process of globalization goes on, information technologies, modern technical means, new methods and forms of teaching, as well as new approaches to the process of training students are widely applied and shared among teacher communities, promoting not only standardization and unification of teaching processes, but also improving the methodologies of the educational process. In teaching a foreign language at a technical higher school, the use of ICT is dictated by the order of the minds of the students, who are generally technology-literate and are accustomed to using personal computers, tablets, videos and other technology based means of acquiring and digesting information and whose future professional activity will be more and more connected with modern technologies.
In terms of learning a foreign language, it is important to face the fact that studying it is a tiresome process. It also requires perseverance and patience before an average student feels personal progress in mastering a language. Practical teachers know only too well that students learn at different rates and have different (if any at all) styles of learning a foreign language. The use of technology helps teachers reach all students in different ways, motivating them to learn and turn the simply dull process into an exciting activity. Luckily, the present generation of students has been growing up in the digital universe of websites, e-mails, smart phones and social networking sites. Their everyday behavior is also being shaped by digital technology. So the job of a teacher is to employ as much as is reasonably necessary and possible the elements of ICT in the process of teaching a foreign language.
Modern computer technologies help to relate the curriculum to lifestyles outside the classroom. Studying the topic "Electricity" in a textbook through closed reading of the lesson, paying attention to lexical details, grammar constructions and technical terms can turn out to be an effective form to involve students in worthwhile, interactional activities such as information gathering or problem-solving projects on the latest industrial applications of electricity (e.g. lasers) or on the renewable sources of electricity (e.g. the sun energy, wind, geothermal energy and others). In this case, the use of computer technology offers an immediate and varied source of data that needs only careful compilation and certain adaptation to the task set. For the students who are permanently multitasking - downloading tracks, uploading photos, texting - such tasks become exciting challenges.
At technical universities it has been common practice to teach a foreign language only for 3 to 4 terms and traditionally these are only the first and second years of their study within a totally new academic environment when the students are not yet exposed to the particulars of their major and they have to learn English through the topics of Superconductivity, or Semiconducting materials, or Microelectronic circuit technology much ahead of the time when they will be exposed to them through the lectures and practical training at the departments of their specialization. The details in the printed texts will become more meaningful after the computer lecture is delivered in the form of a Power Point presentation, using thematically and logically arranged sequences of information units illustrated by images, sound and video fragments. After such lessons, the stud-
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ied material remains in memory as a bright image and helps the teacher in further stimulating students' interest to the subject.
In current multimedia programs, IC technology adds many exciting dimensions to the process of foreign language learning - image, sound, and music. Some creative and technologically advanced students willingly take the initiative in elaborating mini versions of such programs under the guidance of a teacher and in this way their technical skills and productive / receptive abilities in learning a language are used for real purposes. The role and enthusiasm of the teacher cannot be overestimated in pursuing such activities as basic recommendations and the site lists of the resources for the tasks should be supplied by the teacher who must clearly realize the reasonable balance between the aims of teaching a certain aspect of the language and the time and effort investment in its completion. Because the latter consideration is obviously crucial, such tasks can be put into practice on a rare occasion and serve as a kind of a treat for the class and a generous rewarding bonus for the performers of the task.
A more practical way of integrating IC technology into the teaching/learning process of a foreign language is the PowerPoint presentation, which is prepared as a home task according to the time limit, format and range of the language means provided by the teacher and made in the classroom. Because students of technical departments study a foreign language on the basis of popular scientific texts, their topics are easily related to everyday life and the abundant Internet resources can be readily downloaded, shaped and illustrated with scanned photos or clip art images, resulting in the students operating by the necessary for the teaching process language resources dealing with the problems close to their professional interests. The sessions may be conducted in the form of a contest for the most successful presentation. To save time, presentations can also be emailed to the teacher for the assessment.
Time and effort considerations when integrating PP presentations into the teaching process can be successfully facilitated by the fact that, as a result of holding annual conferences for the students of technical departments, an extended library of their presentations has been formed accompanied by published abstracts. All the materials are arranged and stored on the relevant University site, which is extended on a regular basis by further students' contributions at the conferences and it is only a matter of several clicks for the teacher to integrate the necessary fragments of the colorful, highly imaginative presentations into the classroom activity to make the lesson more exciting and to inspire other students to participate in the conferences.
Most technical (and non-technical) schools of higher learning have some classrooms equipped with IWB (Interactive White Board) and PC terminals for the students. No doubt, the lessons in such laboratories are welcomed by the students with enthusiasm and the material studied there is easier learned and longer remembered compared to the process in a traditional classroom. The reason is that the presentation of the material by the teacher on the IWB can be immediately supported by the tasks on the screens of the PCs to be completed by the students. The teacher can get immediate feedback from all the students, and the students turn from passive listeners to active participants as required by the latest State Educational standards. In this way, the technology being incorporated into instruction significantly changes the traditional roles of the teacher and the students in the classroom. It becomes a means of differentiated and individualized instruction, allowing the students to progress at different rates while gaining practice in different areas of language learning. When the technology is used as a means to achieve a well-defined performance task, it is possible for students to follow different paths to the learning goal. The teacher functions as a facilitator and as a guide, changing from a mere authority in the classroom environment into a reliable partner for the student in the pursuit of learning.
The list of computer-aided technologies likely to be integrated into the teaching process and the process of learning a foreign language would be incomplete without mentioning very small gadgets that are always with us - mobile phones and handhelds which have become essential parts of daily life for youth.
Because university computer laboratories equipped with Interactive White Boards (IWB) and PC terminals are available only on a shared basis, the lessons utilizing this environment require the coordination of multiple teacher's schedules, which is highly inconvenient. While mobile and smart phones are normally on students, offering anytime and anywhere connectivity and widespread internet access, students are provided an advanced interactive learning style through their unique combinations of features such as telephony, computing, messaging and multimedia. Whether one likes it or not, whether one is ready for it or not, mobile learning represents the next step in a long tradition of technology-mediated learning. (7) Its proliferation is transforming classroom learning: traditional paper textbooks are being replaced with digital books and students are reaping the benefits of always having the latest information at their fingertips. The full implications and potential of these technologies are yet to be realized through new strategies that are being elaborated and applications and resources that are being constantly updated.
As the other technology, the one based on the use of mobile phones may not guarantee better learning, but it can attract and maintain the learners' interest (7). A practical example of such an exciting activity that incorporated the use of mobile phones was a task where second-year students compiled a mini information thesaurus of acronyms related to mobiles and wireless. Some students were really surprised to learn the full meaning of several special terms widely and daily used by them, such as IM (instant messaging), GPS (Global Positioning system), which is not the same as GPRS (General Packet Radio Service), MMS (Multimedia Messaging system), and Wi-Fi (Wireless fidelity)- It was really worth watching the students joining their efforts and competing with each other in completing the task and leaving the classroom happy with a home assignment to include more terms and expressions to their findings at the lesson. Quite unexpectedly, the task turned into a competition for the most complete and best illustrated project and they were challenged to develop further ideas for other tasks, such as creating thematic mind maps employing multimedia possibilities of computer technology.
Other examples of using mobile phones for learning a foreign language might be a phone based lecture delivery in the form of small videos, audio podcasts, PPT, and PDF, as well as small text based quizzes with collaboration being affected by the SMS messaging and mini sessions of Q&A from a teacher to students and from student to student. Mobile learning environments are already an integral part of student's day-to-day activities, so why not recommend that the students download certain podcasts and learn while going on public transport, riding a bike for pleasure, or exercising in a gym.
As a way of sharing a practical experience of employing ICT technology in the course of teaching a foreign language at the university level, it is worthwhile to mention the course that has been widely used for many years now for senior students being trained for their Master's Degree. At this stage, students' motivation usually reaches its highest level since they need to explore huge amounts of scientific resources necessary for the completion of their graduation paper, most of which is written in English. The course developed proves to be a successful way of distant learning and was efficient in terms of it being based on original scientific texts and numerous exercises grouped into separate blocks and meant for independent study within the strict time schedule and well defined requirements.(6) The students email the sections of the work done for the teacher to check them. The attractive features of this course are that both the teacher and the students work during the times convenient for them. Feedback is regularly effected through the use of e-mailing and on-line consultations that may be given through Skype technology. It is a complete four-term course based on the original university ORIOKS platform. The course is a set of learning materials in combination with intermediate and final tests. The process is guided and controlled by a strict schedule which helps to keep the students on track. Their work is well-organized and stimulated by the grades, so the students strive to perform the tasks properly. This is a practical example of successful application of ICT not only for occasional use, but as a complete course.
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As mentioned above, the most attractive feature of the course is that both the teacher and the students work at the time convenient for them, which is a great advantage. Face-to-face sessions are also an integral part of the course. They are held on a special flexible schedule with the aim of developing speaking skills necessary at the time of preparing papers for inter-university or international conferences, participating in international projects and programs, and collaborating with young scientists from other countries, as well as for editing articles in a foreign language meant for publication.
To sum up, let us outline the most essential features of the ICT application in teaching in general and teaching a foreign language in particular. The first and foremost is that it provides not only the information resource but also serves as a powerful tool for communication and collaboration of the participants in the process of learning, creating an integrated environment for efficient interaction with the program of study and interaction between the teacher and the students. The next feature is the most up-to-date information that can be downloaded onto the server, which makes it available anytime anywhere where there is access to the Internet. Also significant is the feature of easy access to the information irrespective of the PC, tablet, or mobile phone, etc. platform. This unique combination of the information resources, numerous possible ways of interaction and integration of the learning environment and technology appears to become an unprecedented stimulus to offer great educational potential. (4)
However, when integrating elements of modern information computer technology into the teaching process it is necessary to take into consideration some aspects of it application. To begin with, the teacher must clearly realize whether the implementation of the technology will really help to stimulate students' motivation for studying the subject. This is important because sometimes the tasks become too complicated through ambiguous requirements. Further consideration is directly related to the previous one - whether the choice of the approach and of the tasks is justified from a methodological point of view, or whether the activities with the use of computer technologies are well balanced with other oral or written tasks, pair and team work, so that the technology ingredient of the lesson is not the aim, per se, but a logical and effective complement to the teaching process. (2) ICT makes great demands on teacher's qualifications and competencies as any new technical means yields good results when there is a new generation of teachers ready and willing to adopt the means and when there is a sound methodological background for its implementation. It is also the individual features of the learners, such as their memory and hearing capabilities, attention and reaction, and rate of speech that play a significant role in making decisions about how to motivate the students and how to turn information technologies into effective didactic instruments.(4)
The experience of a practical teacher suggests that, for the time being, there is no complete course developed for the students of technical universities, which is ridiculous because technical universities are by definition well equipped with all the necessary facilities and IT specialists. True, there are some useful sites of methodologists with recommendations on the use of ICT in teaching (e.g. www.ioso.ru/distant,www.center.fio.ru, http://teacher.fio.ru), but the result is that both classroom activities and tasks for independent and creative work of students still require long-term planning, clear goals and procedures, and constant supervision.
The challenges previously mentioned immediately pose a question whether "the game is worth the candle" - with so much effort there may appear problems of misunderstandings and the risk of mis- or over- interpreting bits of information and the desired effects are not reached. There is also a serious technical aspect of the integration of e-learning/teaching into the process of study as the electronic platforms that will allow customizing teaching materials will require developing adequate tasks. To raise the standard of media literacy, teachers need to invest time, not only in the acquisition of technical skills, but especially in selecting materials, finding suitable tasks, requiring and giving feedback and constantly adapting and improving materials and tasks. While some teachers embrace new media enthusiastically, others have highly limited expectations and
are more skeptical, though still making an effort. Most students are still used to linear argument and the printed texts as the main mediums for academic expression and learning, which is one of the ironies of the Internet use.(3) They need to acquire critical and analytical skills in reading and evaluating the flows of on-line information and successfully select suitable materials from the relevant websites. Forming these skills requires time, which is highly limited.
It remains to be seen what role the computer will come to occupy in the foreign-language classroom for the students of technical departments, but one thing seems certain: ICT is here to stay and, with further research, educators will undoubtedly learn how to utilize it to its full potential.
References:
1. Karamysheva T.V. Computer-aided learning of foreign languages. - SPb.: Soyuz Publishing house, 2001. 192 P.
2. Kas'yanova V.P., Kucheryavaya T.L. The use of new technologies in teaching a foreign language for begin-ners//Contemporary issues of modern pedagogy: proceedings of an international conference (Ufa, June 2011). Ufa: Leto, 2011. C.129-132
3. Linke G. Introduction to New Media - New Teaching Options?! Universitasverlag Winter Heidelberg, 2006
4. L'vova O.V. The use of Information computer technologies in project teaching at a high school. The author's Abstract for the Degree of Candidate of Sciences . Moscow 2007.
5. Thuleen Nancy The role of the computer in the foreign-language classroom: A German Webpage class activity. URL :http ://www.nthuleen. com/papers/722internet.html.
6. Vinogradova I. Yu. E-module of educational supplies on English grammar MA technical students. URL:http://www.orioks.miet.ru.
7. Wagner Elen Enabling Mobile learning. EDUCAUSE review, May/June 2005, p.41-52
