Discussion as a method of forming communication skills while teaching english in a higher educational institution

Размещено на http://www.allbest.ru

Discussion as a method of forming communication skills while teaching english in a higher educational institution

Lyudmyla Pidkolesna,

Senior Lecturer at the Department of Modern European Languages

State University of Trade and Economics (Kyiv, Ukraine)

Olena ZHERONKINA,

Senior Lecturer at the Department of Modern European Languages

State University of Trade and Economics (Kyiv, Ukraine)

The article deals with the use of discussion as a method of developing communication skills while teaching English in a higher educational institution. It has been found that a modern student must master not only professional skills but also a high level of English language proficiency. Learning a foreign language by students is a highly intellectual activity that requires a high motivation. The developed ability to think and express their thoughts in English expands students ' professional opportunities and increases the possibility of cooperation with colleagues from all the world. However, in practice, students have difficulties applying their theoretical knowledge of English.

Communication skills are important qualitative characteristics of a personality contributing to a successful process of socialization. Communication skills formation should be reflected in the future students 'professional activity. Our study is aimed at solving the problem of the effectiveness of using the discussion method in the process of developing students ' communication skills while learning a foreign language. Discussion helps to apply the acquired knowledge from different areas of the profession in practice, develop foreign language skills, and contributes to form students' communication skills. The authors introduce the forms of discussions in order to draw teachers' attention to the discussion method and show the importance of using this modern pedagogical method for achieving fluency in English. The article describes the course and content of the discussion, which can be used by English teachers to adapt it to their tasks and goals. Using this method will contribute to achieve high results not only in mastering a vocabulary, but also in developing communication skills for the educational material successful learning.

Key words: students, communication skills, English, discussion.

discussion communication educational

Людмила ПІДКОЛЕСНА,

старший викладач кафедри сучасних європейських мов Державного торговельно-економічного університету (Київ, Україна)

Олена ЖЕРОНКІНА,

старший викладач кафедри сучасних європейських мов Державного торговельно-економічного університету

(Київ, Україна)

ДИСКУСІЯ ЯК МЕТОД ФОРМУВАННЯ КОМУНІКАТИВНИХ НАВИЧОК ПРИ НАВЧАННІ АНГЛІЙСЬКІЙ МОВІ У ВИЩОМУ НАВЧАЛЬНОМУ ЗАКЛАДІ

У статті розглянуто питання використання дискусії як методу формування комунікативних навичок при навчанні англійській мові у вищому навчальному закладі. З'ясовано, що сучасний студент має оволодіти не тільки професійними навичками, а й високим рівнем знань англійської мови. Вивчення іноземної мови студентами - високоінтелектуальна діяльність, що потребує високої вмотивованості. Сформоване уміння мислити та викладати свої думки англійською мовою розширює професійні можливості студентів, підвищує можливість співпраці з колегами зі всього світу. Проте на практиці студенти зазнають труднощів під час застосування теоретичних знань англійської мови.

Комунікативні навички - важливі якісні характеристики особистості, що сприяють успішному процесу соціалізації особистості. Формування комунікативних навичок має знаходити своє відображення в майбутній професійній педагогічній діяльності студентів. Наше дослідження спрямоване на розв'язання проблеми ефективності застосування методу дискусії в процесі формування комунікативних навичок студентів під час вивчення іноземної мови. Дискусія допомагає застосовувати на практиці набуті знання з різних сфер професії, розвивати навички володіння іноземною мовою, сприяє формуванню комунікативних навичок студентів. Автори знайомлять з формами дискусій з метою привернення уваги викладачів до методу дискусії, намагаються показати значення застосування цього сучасного педагогічного методу для вільного володіння англійською мовою. У статті розглянуто хід і зміст дискусії, спираючись на які викладачі англійської мови зможуть адаптувати їх під свої завдання та цілі. Використання цього методу сприятиме досягненню високих результатів не тільки в освоєнні лексики, а й у формуванні комунікативних навичок для успішного засвоєння навчального матеріалу.

Ключові слова: студенти, комунікативні навички, англійська мова, дискусія.

Problem statement. For a modem person, knowledge of foreign languages has become a vital necessity. Students realize that knowledge of a foreign language at the level of not only general use (General English), but also at the professional level (Professional English), is reflected in the monetary profitability of this communication skill: in the labor market today, a qualified specialist having high qualification qualities and is able to act at the level of international business relations is valued, [2]. In this regard, forming communicative competence skills is the main task in learning foreign language. Thus, the English-language communicative competence includes knowledge not only purely linguistic, but also related to the chosen profession profile.

The issue of finding methods for determining strategies that ensure the effective professional and forming communication skills is also gaining importance. Learning the basics of business communication plays an important role in the future specialists' communicative activity. Forming communication skills contributes to the communicative situations creation in the classroom that satisfies the future specialists' professional interests and are close to the natural communication conditions.

Our research is aimed at analyzing the problem of the effectiveness of the use of discussion as a method of forming communication skills while teaching English in a higher education institution.

Research analysis. The discussion as a method of forming communication skills while teaching English in a higher educational institution is considered by many modern scientists (N. Vasylyshyna, I. Zaitseva, H. Korniush, L. Liubchak, O. Udalova, I. Shkarban, and others). in the works mentioned, forming the students' communication skills is characterized by applying a discussion based on problem situations, discussion as an active method of learning foreign languages. The use of the discussion was considered by applying to the students of pedagogical and technical specialties.

The purpose of the article is to analyze the effectiveness of the discussion as a method of forming communication skills while teaching English in a higher education institution.

The main material presentation. The first step is to decide what is understood as the student's foreign language communication skills. Thus, N. Vasylyshyna defines communication skills as a level of interaction with other people during communication, the individual's understanding of the information received and transmitted (Vasylyshyna, 2015: 193). A. Udalova characterizes communication skills as an integrated personal resource necessary for building communication in a variety of social and business situations, knowledge of cultural norms, traditions, customs, etiquette of communication (Udalova, 2020: 326). The breadth of using speech and knowledge baggage is determined by the effectiveness of this communicative process. Developing communication skills should be reflected in the students' future professional activities.

The students' activities are, in fact, educational and professional. From the beginning of their studies, they master a complex terminological apparatus not only in major disciplines, but also in the course of learning English. Sometimes obtaining information and getting acquainted with professional terminology and processes in the context of learning English is ahead of mastering these concepts in the process of learning major disciplines. Naturally, this increases the level of students' motivation to master English and improves the effectiveness of the learning process (Halatsyn, 2020: 54).

The most common method of the educational process in case of the use of group, interactive (that is, based on interaction) teaching methods is discussion.

Zaitseva calls the discussion a public dispute, the purpose of which is to clarify and compare different points of view, search, identify an opinion, find the right controversial issue solution. In professional training, discussion is used when a mutual exchange of views and knowledge contributes to searching for a new look at the professional activities of people, changes in behavior patterns, development of mental activity and students' interpersonal skills (Zaitseva, 2017: 54).

The objectives of the discussion according to V. Lehan include: training, diagnosis, training, stimulation to learning. The principle of organizing a discussion is promoting the alternative opinions occurrence, through problem solving and constructive criticism (Lehan, 2019: 249).

S. Sabat highlights a number of advantages of discussion in the educational process: ensuring active and deep assimilation of knowledge (has a long-term effect), student interaction is carried out (development of communication skills and students' confidence), students can test and compare their points of view among themselves (assessment method) (Sabat, 2014: 252).

Sapozhnykova considers the difficulties when working with the method of discussion in the process of learning a foreign language:

psychological discomfort. Students, as a rule, because of fear of making mistakes and the teacher's criticism are embarrassed to speak English, since speaking, unlike other language skills, requires relaxedness and courage in front of the audience.

“Nothing to say.” Sometimes students have a problem - lack of opinions, they cannot concentrate and express thoughts in a foreign language.

Use of the native language. Students sometimes resort to using their native language due to the lack of sufficient vocabulary in a foreign language and a natural communication environment.

Different levels of student engagement. Some students have a higher level of communication skills in a foreign language and have an advantage in the discussion process; other students say little or nothing at all. Therefore, working in large groups complicates the process of forming communication skills (O. Sapozhnykova, 2014: 43).

According to I. Shkarban, the teacher, as a discussion coordinator, should adhere to the following tasks:

Formulate a topic of discussion, create the necessary motivation, show the relevance of the problem.

Create a favorable atmosphere.

Acquaint students with the rules of discussion.

Keep students active.

Guide students, summarize intermediate results (Shkarban, 2022: 405).

Successful discussion requires its proper organization discussion, since the methodically competent discussion organization has a significant impact on its further course and successful completion. Thus, V. Lehan identifies the following stages of the discussion organization:

Preliminary explanation of the topic of discussion, acquaintance of participants with the subject of discussion, their roles and the rules of the event.

Brief preliminary discussion of the issue in small groups.

Introduction of the topic, preset for the task participants.

A brief preliminary survey on the topic.

Distributing roles.

Presenting positions, a collective discussion.

Summing up (Lehan, 2019: 249).

The most common types of educational discussion are a round table, brainstorming, and debate. Let's consider the features of above-mentioned types of discussion in the context of forming communication skills in an English lesson in a higher educational institution.

According to H. Korniush, a round table is one of the types of discussion, the purpose of which is to unite the group, develop empathy, create a warm friendly atmosphere in the team, exchange information and create an able-bodied team or group. The main difference between this type of activity is that, according to the name, participants are taken places at a round table. The optimal number of participants is 6-12 people, since a smaller number makes the atmosphere tense, and a larger one can lead to a low level of all the participants involvement (Korniush, 2020: 99).

Let's consider the round table features on the example of the topic “Travelling”. Having seated the students around the table, a moderator can ask the following questions to the group: “What country would you like to visit and why?”, “Have you ever been to foreign countries?”, “What surprised you?”, “What do you think: what country is perfect for having rest?”, “What new amazing things did you discover while travelling?”, etc.

During the round table, students will be able to share their experience, memories and thoughts. This type of discussion doesn't have clear rules and regulations.

Brainstorming is a process of group creative thinking, a means of obtaining a large number of ideas from participants in a short period of time. During brainstorming, all, even meaningless ideas are put forward and recorded, everything that comes to the participants' mind, there is no regulation, controversy and criticism. During the brainstorming session on the topic “Food and diet”, the following questions can be proposed for discussion: “What can we do to lose weight?”: eat less, run more, go in for sport, drink much water, keep a diet, do not eat sweets, dance, etc. a moderator fixes this on the board. According to K. Halatsyn, the advantage of this method is to create the effect of qualitative multiplication of knowledge (Halatsyn, 2020: 59).

A debate is a special kind of discussion that involves a clash of polar points of view about a particular problem. For the debate, first of all, a topic containing a contradiction is chosen, which can cause students several controversial positions. It is also necessary to choose a moderator, an expert and two teams of participants. The teams are located opposite each other, and a stand for debate is installed in the center of the hall. Before starting the game, the teams that argue for and against are selected by random selection method. To prepare and build arguments, teams are given time. The expert evaluates the course of the game, the opponents' arguments and the participants' views; the moderator sets the time schedule. Participants listen carefully to each other, make notes and put forward counterarguments. At the end of the debate, the moderator sums up the discussion and thanks the participants (Halat- syn, 2020: 60).

Let's consider a debate entitled “Money rules the world.” The topic assumes two opposing positions, one team can contradict the topic, arguing that “Money doesn't rule the world”, “There are a lot of things, that money can't buy”, etc., while the second team can express its position as: “We live in the 21st century when money can solve all of our problems...”.

So, the advantage of this type of discussion is:

improving communication skills and oratory in a foreign language;

improving the ability to defend their position;

using techniques to influence the partner and resist influence.

Considering the above aspects of using discussion as a method of forming communication skills while teaching English, a teacher faces a number of tasks, namely:

consider differences in the students' interests and motivation to study;

thoughtfully and cautiously approach to the issue of evaluating students in foreign language lessons during the discussion;

consider the emotional atmosphere in the group;

use methods and techniques aimed at enhancing the students' speech activity;

stimulate the students' independent creative activity;

promote critical thinking development and students' argumentation skills;

provide theoretical information that there is behind specific speech phenomena;

promote the development of skills of independent work while a foreign language learning.

Conclusions. We can summarize that using a discussion on a foreign language makes it possible to form communication skills, activates the student's foreign language communication, helps to stimulate their interest to the discipline. Teachers' mastery of this technology expands their understanding of students' communication skills as a comprehensive personal resource; on improving the communicative competence of students through the use in educational and independent work of the method of discussion, which includes tasks for the development of cognitive and the individual's motivational activity, empathy, reflection, interpersonal skills. We consider it appropriate to use the discussion at all levels of learning a foreign language, since the discussion brings diversity and makes a lesson bright and dynamic.

Bibliography

Василишина Н. Застосування методів навчально-пізнавальної діяльності у процесі вивчення ділової іноземної мови як необхідна передумова формування комунікативних навичок у студентів. Вісник Луганського національного університету імені Тараса Шевченка. Педагогічні науки. 2015. No 22 (2). С. 193-198.

Галацин К., Ярошенко О. Технології опрацювання дискусійних питань у процесі вивчення студентами технічних спеціальностей англійської мови. Збірник наукових праць Уманського державного педагогічного університету. 2020. No 1. С. 53-62.

Зайцева I. Експериментальна перевірка ефективності методики навчання майбутніх філологів ведення англомовної дискусії на основі проблемних ситуацій. Вісник київського національного лінгвістичного університету. Серія Педагогіка та Психологія. 2014. No 23. С. 53-67.

Зайцева І., Писанко М. Методика навчання майбутніх філологів ведення дискусії англійською мовою на основі проблемних ситуацій. Вісник київського національного лінгвістичного університету. Серія Педагогіка та Психологія. 2017. No 27. С. 54-61.

Корнюш Г Формування м'яких навичок у студентів закладів вищої освіти в контексті навчання іноземних мов. Викладання мов у вищих навчальних закладах освіти на сучасному етапі. Міжпредметні зв'язки. 2020. No 36. С. 99-110.

Леган В., Годованець Н. Дискусія як активний метод вивчення іноземних мов. Сучасні дослідження з іноземної філології: Зб. наук. праць. Одеса: Видавничий дім «Гельветика». 2019. No 17. С. 249-257.

Любчак Л. Використання технології тренінгу в формуванні комунікативної компетентності майбутніх учителів початкових класів. Сучасні інформаційні технології та інноваційні методики навчання в підготовці фахівців: методологія, теорія, досвід, проблеми. 2016. No 47. С. 70-75.

Сабат С. Дискусія як метод інтерактивного навчання іноземних мов майбутніх фахівців сфери міжнародних відносин. Вісник Львівського університету. Серія: Міжнародні відносини. 2014. No 35. С. 252-258.

Сапожникова О. Навчальна дискусія як метод активізації пізнавальної діяльності студентів при вивченні іноземної мови. Творчий потенціал мовних кафедр в інноваційному розвитку дослідницького університету: зб. матеріалів міжкаф. наук.-метод. конф., 18 лют. 2014 р. Київ: КНЕУ 2014. С. 43-45.

Удалова О. Формування комунікативних умінь студентів у процесі професійної підготовки. Нові технології навчання: збірник наукових праць. ДНУ «Інститут модернізації змісту освіти». Київ, 2020. No 94. С. 326-331.

Шкарбан І. Наукова дискусія як метод організації навчання іноземних мов (компетентісний підхід). Наука, практика і теорія. Матеріали IV міжнародної науково-практичної конференції (1-4 лютого, 2022 р.). Токіо, Японія. 2022. С. 405-407.

References

Vasylyshyna N. Zastosuvannia metodiv navchalno-piznavalnoi diialnosti u protsesi vyvchennia dilovoi inozemnoi movy yak neobkhidna peredumova formuvannia komunikatyvnykh navychok u studentiv. [Application of methods of educational and cognitive activity in the process of learning a business foreign language as a necessary prerequisite for the formation of communication skills in students.] Bulletin of Luhansk Taras Shevchenko National University. Pedagogical Sciences, 2015, Nr 22 (2), pp. 193-198 [in Ukrainian].

Halatsyn K., Yaroshenko O. Tekhnolohii opratsiuvannia dyskusiinykh pytan u protsesi vyvchennia studentamy tekhnichnykh spetsialnostei anhliiskoi movy. [Technologies for processing discussion issues in the process of students studying technical specialties of the English language.]. Collection of scientific works of Uman State Pedagogical University, 2020, Nr 1, pp. 53-62 [in Ukrainian].

Zaitseva I. Eksperymentalna perevirka efektyvnosti metodyky navchannia maibutnikh filolohiv vedennia anhlomovnoi dyskusii na osnovi problemnykh sytuatsii. [Experimental testing of the effectiveness of the teaching methodology of future philologists to conduct an English-language discussion based on problem situations.] Bulletin of Kyiv National Linguistic University. Series Pedagogy and Psychology, 2014, Nr 23. pp. 53-67 [in Ukrainian].

Zaitseva I., Pysanko M. Metodyka navchannia maibutnikh filolohiv vedennia dyskusii anhliiskoiu movoiu na osnovi problemnykh sytuatsii. [Methods of teaching future philologists to conduct a discussion in English on the basis of problem situations.] Bulletin of Kyiv National Linguistic University. Series Pedagogy and Psychology, 2017, Nr 27, pp. 54-61 [in Ukrainian].

Korniush H. Formuvannia miakykh navychok u studentiv zakladiv vyshchoi osvity v konteksti navchannia inozemnykh mov. [Formation of soft skills among students of higher education institutions in the context of teaching foreign languages.] Teaching languages in higher educational institutions at the present stage. Interdisciplinary connections, 2020, Nr 36. pp. 99-110 [in Ukrainian].

Lehan V., Hodovanets N. Dyskusiia yak aktyvnyi metod vyvchennia inozemnykh mov. [Discussion as an active method of learning foreign languages.] Modern studies in foreign philology: Collection of scientific works of Odessa: Publishing House “Helvetika”, 2019, Nr 17, pp. 249-257 [in Ukrainian].

Liubchak L. Vykorystannia tekhnolohii treninhu v formuvanni komunikatyvnoi kompetentnosti maibutnikh uchyteliv pochatkovykh klasiv. [The use of training technology in the formation of communicative competence of future primary school teachers.] Modern information technologies and innovative teaching methods in the training of specialists: methodology, theory, experience, problems, 2016, Nr 47, pp. 70-75 [in Ukrainian].

Sabat S. Dyskusiia yak metod interaktyvnoho navchannia inozemnykh mov maibutnikh fakhivtsiv sfery mizhnarodnykh vidnosyn. [Discussion as a method of interactive teaching of foreign languages to future specialists in the field of international relations.] Bulletin of Lviv University. Series: International Relations, 2014, Nr 35, pp. 252-258 [in Ukrainian].

Sapozhnykova O. Navchalna dyskusiia yak metod aktyvizatsii piznavalnoi diialnosti studentiv pry vyvchenni inozemnoi movy. [Educational discussion as a method of enhancing the cognitive activity of students in the study of a foreign language.] Creative potential of language departments in the innovative development of the research university: a collection of materials of interdepartmental sciences. -method. conf., Feb. 18. 2014. Kyiv: KNEU, 2014, pp. 43-45 [in Ukrainian].

Udalova O. Formuvannia komunikatyvnykh umin studentiv u protsesi profesiinoi pidhotovky. [Formation of communicative skills of students in the process of professional training.] New teaching technologies: a collection of scientific works. DNU “Institute for the modernization of the content of education”. Kyiv, 2020, Nr 94, pp. 326-331 [in Ukrainian].

Shkarban I. Naukova dyskusiia yak metod orhanizatsii navchannia inozemnykh mov (kompetentisnyi pidkhid). [Scientific discussion as a method of organizing the teaching of foreign languages (competence approach).] Science, practice and theory. Proceedings of the IV International Scientific and Practical Conference (February 1-4, 2022). Tokyo, Japan, 2022, pp. 405-407 [in Ukrainian].

Размещено на Allbest.ru