Тhe use of innovative mobile devices at the foreign language lesson in the higher educational establishment

Abstract

The article is devoted to the determination of using smartphones and tablets in the process of foreign language training at higher educational institutions (HEI). Authors describe the examples of tasks that demand functioning mobile devices. It has been established that doing exercises with the use of smartphones and tablets increases motivation of students, contributes to the development of communicative, cross-cultural, linguosociocultural, cognitive, and information competences. It has been proved that the use of mobile devices needs to be combined with traditional methods of training.

It has been noted that compared to foreign countries, our country does not pay enough attention to the use of the potential of mobile devices in the process of foreign language training. Thus, the Germans organize seminars, conferences, where teachers of HEI, school teachers discuss possibilities of rational use of smartphones and tablets in foreign language classes.

The authors underline that smartphones and tablets offer a lot of opportunities to organize foreign language classes in a creative way. In addition to the textbook work, they improve the traditional forms of teaching/learning. Changing the same forms of work in the classroom with the use of mobile devices can positively affect the motivation of students. Smartphones (tablets) are good assistants in organizing work in groups and individual students’ work both in the classroom and outside the institution. Moreover, mobile devices help to apply a differentiated approach to the process of teaching/learning. In particular, the students are supposed to receive tasks depending on their individual characteristics and according to their level of proficiency in a foreign language. The implementation of these tasks with the use of smartphones allows them to work at their own pace, which will help to overcome the fear of learning a foreign language and contribute to enhancing the motivation.

It has been outlined that the use of mobile devices in training foreign languages contributes to the introduction of innovative forms of teaching and didactically extends traditional forms of teaching/learning. In other words, in the classroom it is worth combining the use of mobile devices with the developed learning methods. The tasks presented in the textbook on the development of all types of speech activities (reading, speaking, writing, listening) can also be done by students using their smartphones and tablets. The teacher should accompany this process giving explanations and advices.