SOCIAL NETWORKS FOR FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHINGSocial networks provide rich opportunities to use English in a targeted and purposeful way. All social networks that exist nowadays may be used as powerful means of authentic communication in foreign language teaching. On a par with an ordinary type of social network like Facebook and Bebo a private, closed social network may be created by English teachers for use as a class and represent a new way of teaching English in particular. Creating such a network can be very practical in language teaching and be used as a supplementary means of guiding students in language learning with focus on multiple opportunities for communication in English and closed cooperation and interaction between teachers and their students. In view of this, the aim of the article is to ascertain the role and importance of private, closed social networks that may be used in the English language teaching as a new approach to modern language teaching methodology. The research has been carried out on the basis of a private, closed social network creation and its implementation in the process of teaching fist-year students at NTUU, future technical translators of the English language. To fulfill the research we have made a unique social network with thirty first-year students joined in it, who have been divided into two separate groups, enabling them to interact and communicate with all the network members, but closely cooperate only with the members of a definite group. The students were ensured not only to exchange ideas, experiences of language learning, but also interact with their teacher and group mates: send messages, share files, submit their homework assignments electronically, check their current schedule, latest news and notifications, be aware of their homework assignments, grades and comments that the teacher makes to them, altogether creating a common language learning space, that is the core idea of using the private, closed network in language teaching. Furthermore, we have analyzed the main principle of the private, closed network functioning in a class and the effectiveness of its implementation in the process of teaching English and have obtained the following results. Firstly, the private network unlike ordinary social network proved to have no risks inherent in sharing and collaborating online that go beyond viruses, worms, and identity theft, and students get educated on Internet safety with limited risk and access by other people to the closed network, which is intended for storing personal data and files of its members. Secondly, the private network enables both students and their teacher to proceed cooperating after scheduled classes providing a wide range of feedback: writing messages in order to ask or clarify something, submitting their homework assignments in the form of any type of computer file, including text, graphics, sound, or video, checking their homework and grades boards, being aware of the latest news and notifications, having online classes if necessary. That is why, the feedback that was chosen on the private network has proved to be effective and efficient in language learning, focusing on the communication, which concerned the tasks or topics studied in the class, and encouraging learners’ attempts to communicate in English, and use the language in written and oral forms. As a result it helped to build first-year students confidence when communicating in English, as well as provided the opportunity for self-analysis and self-correction. Thirdly, the closed network contributes to the close cooperation between students being members of one network, who have been joined to their list of group mates. Students are able not only participate in the discussions, or engage individual members, who share common interest and ideas, but also work together on given projects, provided that they use only English for communication. What is more, the private, closed network serves as a data and files storage, enabling students to submit various tasks electronically, and their teacher to check them and leave the comments online. Each student is ensured to have his/her portfolio that represents a systematic collection of students’ works over a definite period of time. It demonstrates learners' progress and is regularly evaluated by the teacher. Apart from this, the private network has proved to be an indispensable organizer letting students know about the upcoming class events and deadlines, and online grades register, that reflects students’ marks for various activities and tasks, making it possible for the first-year students as well as their parents to be aware of strong and weak points that students possess in the process of studying English. We have come to the conclusion that private, closed networks can be used to positive effects in countless ways in teaching and learning English, serving as a special teaching tool, that ensures close cooperation and interaction between students as network members. Література: |
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