Benefits Of Modern Learning Technologies In Teaching Romanian As L2
Abstract
Learning technology consists of a set of techniques, performed in a certain sequence, allowing the implementation of a teaching method; or a set of teaching methods that ensure the implementation of a certain approach to learning, the implementation of a certain teaching system. If in the traditional education system, the teacher and textbook were sources of knowledge, and the teacher was also the controlling subject of knowledge, then, in the new paradigm of education, the teacher acts more as an organizer of international students’ independent active activities, a competent consultant and assistant. His professional skills should aim not only at monitoring international students’ skills and knowledge but also at diagnosing their activities, to help eliminate emerging difficulties through qualified actions over time. It is well known the most important means of communication is language, without which we cannot exist, and the development of human societies is impossible. In today’s society, there are changes in social relations, means of communication (the use of new communication information technologies), the creation of students’ competence, so that they can relate in various situations in the process of interaction with other co-participants in communication. It is necessary to use the language and grammatical rules correctly, opting for a communicative behavior according to the authentic communication situation. The main objective of learning a foreign language is to form communicative competence, that is, the ability to carry out interpersonal and intercultural communication in the foreign language with native speakers.
Keywords: Educational process, international students, learning, teaching
Introduction
“The digital revolution is transforming education by using information and communication technologies (ICTs) to improve students’ learning outcomes. In the last 50 years, changes can be seen in every area of society, such as culture, entertainment, and social interaction. However, the current educational model is very similar to how it was back then” (Fombona, et al., 2020, p. 173). “Although there is evidence of the negative impact Internet access, social networks, and the use of mobile devices could cause in current education, the use of mobile technologies is gaining ground in education” (Sobral, 2020, p. 159).
Therefore, the educational aspect is an integral part of the educational process, all educational technologies ensure the education of the qualities necessary for a mature personality in students.
“Language as a means of communication is a system and is not learned on separate components (phonetic, lexical, grammatical), but in communication units, in statements, which are both phonetic, lexical and grammatical” (Cosăceanu, 2003, p. 71).
“Language is defined as a social product, consisting of a set of rules necessary for communication. Speaking is like an individual segment of language that is used in a statement, in a communication act” (Moldovan et al., 2002, p. 118).
We can safely affirm that professional language training must be substantially rooted in both classic and modern platforms of relevance. It is not our duty to reinvent the Romanian language, but it is our absolute prerogative to contextualize it, to bring it firmly and robustly into the 21st century and make it relatable to highly versatile and eclectic groups of learners (Lăpădat & Lăpădat, 2020, p. 140).
Modern learning technologies, which are used to form an international student’s communication skills in Romanian, are the most productive for creating an educational environment that provides a student-oriented interaction, of all participants in the educational process.
It is obvious that the use of any teaching technology, no matter how perfect, will not create the most effective conditions for the development and development of international students’ skills and the creative search for a teacher.
These modern technologies for L2 teaching incorporate successful information from each of them, allow the teacher to adjust any technology according to the structure, content, goals and objectives of teaching in this particular group of international students.
Problem Statement
Researchers recommended and emphasized the need for changing instructional practices to involve digital learning concepts (Huang et al., 2019, p. 42). But some were hesitant to change their pedagogical approaches to suit the situation (Kerres, 2020, p. 691). During the COVID-19 outbreak, there were rushed opportunities to use emergency remote teaching to expand open educational resources and practices (Chukwuemeka et al., 2021, p. 18). As a result, most educators in higher education already teaching using virtual conferencing and interactions (Divjak et al., 2022, p. 21).
Researchers believe that Romanian language as L2 is difficult to learn for international students in one academic year and to continue their studies in Romanian.
It is therefore necessary to develop methods and tools for learning Romanian modern, articulated cultural dimension and at the same time, focused, not on the history of literature, nor grammar, but practical dimension. “Such an approach, although new in Romania, would meet current real needs, which is expected to increase significantly in the coming years” (Lemnaru, 2013, p. 452).
Research Questions
Most researchers consider learning technologies as one of the ways to implement an approach to personal learning activity in the practical Romanian language course, due to which international students act as active creative subjects.
The question is whether in the methodology of teaching Romanian as a foreign language, in modern technologies, the training is considered to be: collaborative learning, project method (project technologies), student-centered learning, distance learning, use of a language portfolio, and intensive teaching methods, use of technical means (primarily information and audiovisual technologies).
Then, we would like to investigate the teachers' perception on this aspect and if they know and use these modern technologies for teaching the Romanian language as a foreign language.
Purpose of the Study
The study establishes whether the use of learning technologies aims to form a multicultural, multilingual personality capable of intercultural communication, which involves the comprehensive implementation of the following objectives: educational, developmental, educational and practical.
In order to achieve the general goal necessary for students to master the communicative competence in Romanian as a foreign language, we investigate whether the benefits of using modern technologies in the unity of its components (speech, language, sociocultural, compensatory, educational and cognitive) are found.
Communicative competence is the possession of a set of speech, language and socio-cultural norms of the studied language, as well as compensatory and educational and cognitive skills that allow the graduate to carry out intercultural communication and solve communicative, educational and other tasks.
Speech competence is a set of skills of speech activity, knowledge of the rules of speech behavior, gaining on this basis the experience of using them to build a logical and coherent statement as the form and content of their own statement, as well as to understand and to interpret the statements of other people.
Linguistic competence is a set of knowledge about the rules of operation of the means of language in speech and the ability to use them for communicative purposes.
Sociocultural competence - a body of knowledge about the national cult. the specifics of the countries of the studied language, the ability to construct their discourse and non-speaking behavior in accordance with this specifics, the ability to represent their country and culture on this basis in the conditions of intercultural communication in foreign languages.
Compensatory competence is a set of skills to use additional verbal means and non-verbal ways of solving communication problems in the face of the lack of available linguistic means. Educational and cognitive competence is a set of general and special educational skills needed to implement self-learning. language skills, experience of using them.
Research Method
The search for new pedagogical technologies is associated with the lack of positive motivation of some international students to learn Romanian. Positive motivation is insufficient, and sometimes absent, because when learning a foreign language they face significant difficulties and do not learn the material due to their psychological characteristics.
Learning is a dynamic and individual process. A teacher must seize the rhythm and efficiency of this process, must always analyse and compare the results, and also adjust the teaching methods in order to quickly reach higher standards from a qualitative point of view (Dina & Ciornei, 2014, p. 248).
“There has always been a close relationship between educational methodologies and learning outcomes, as both impact each other” (Neufeld & Delcore, 2018, p. 26).
Project’s method
More and more L2 teachers are turning to language teaching, the design methodology as one of the modern productive creative approaches that successfully implements the main objectives of teaching L2 in providing the necessary communication and speaking skills in students, enabling them to communicate in a foreign language.
The main purpose of the project method is to provide our international students with the opportunity to independently acquire knowledge in the process of solving practical problems or problems that require the integration of knowledge in various study domains. If we talk about the project method as pedagogical technology, this technology involves a combination of research, search, problematic methods, creative nature. We consider that this technology contributes to the development of our international students’ creative skills and develops their imagination and curiosity. During the preparation of the projects, the creative and intellectual potential of the international students is revealed. The project method involves conducting research, working in a team, leading a discussion, to solve problems.
The project method can be used in teaching Romanian for different study programmes, because the selection of subjects was made considering the practical significance for the international student. The educational project must answer its problematic question and comprehensively highlight the progress, that is, the study itself.
The activity in today’s modern society requires international students to develop important cognitive skills, such as the ability to develop their own opinions, to understand new experiences, to have pertinent arguments, to have a clear and coherent expression.
Considered as an innovative technology for developing critical thinking, teachers involve their international students to ask questions and understand the problem to be solved. Critical thinking has an independent individual character, each generates its own ideas, describes its assessments and beliefs independently of others, finds its own solution to the problem and supports it with reasonable and convincing arguments. Critical thinking is social because every thought is tested and refined when it is shared with others. The active life position of the student is especially evident when comparing previously existing knowledge and concepts with newly acquired ones. There are various forms of work that help develop students’ critical thinking: essays, reasoning essays, discussions, dialogues, role-plays, etc.
The use of intensive learning elements allow international students to get in contact with a foreign language environment, where it is possible not only to speak, but also to think in Romanian.
It is beneficial to give international students all the knowledge about the culture, civilization and traditions of our country for the improvement of intercultural communication skills, so that they have a clear picture and can choose the communication style in a conscious way.
Methods focus not only on understanding the meaning, but rather on acquiring the skill to use the words, on actively capitalizing their combining possibilities, to achieve the speaking act.
Student- focused learning
This type of education is found in many higher schools abroad, as one of the options for modern learning technologies. The idea of such training consists in the maximum transfer of initiative within the course to the international student himself.
From a didactic point of view, this learning technology implies the fullest possible disclosure of the international student’s personal potential as a result of a special organization of courses, the creation of partnerships between the teacher and international students. Such an approach is different from the traditional teaching technology, when the teacher is the main character in the international student’s learning activities, ensuring the assimilation of knowledge: the teacher transfers knowledge to the international student, forms skills and abilities and checks their acquisition through a study.
With such a teaching/learning technology, which can be considered a further development of the idea of communicative communication, communication in L2 becomes more effective due to the establishment of partnerships between the teacher and international students and the creation of conditions for revealing the personal characteristics of students.
Since the purpose of teaching in this technology is the autonomy of international students in learning, the international student himself must know how to learn best. To this end, he chooses a Romanian language acquisition strategy and tries to use it during the learning process. Here is a list of some of these strategies: 1) show individuality; 2) organize your training; 3) be creative; 4) learn to deal with uncertainty; 5) learn from your mistakes; 6) use context.
Student-centered learning essentially provides a differentiated approach to learning, considering the level of intellectual development of the international student, as well as his preparation for this subject, his skills and inclinations.
Collaborative learning
This type of learning technology is based on the idea of interaction between international students in a group, the idea of mutual learning, in which they take not only individual but also collective responsibility for solving learning problems, help each other and collectively bear responsibility for everyone’s success
Findings
Unlike frontal and individual learning, in which the international student acts as an individual subject of educational activity and he is only responsible for his successes and failures, and the relationship with the teacher is of a subject-subjective nature, during training, conditions are created in cooperation interaction and the cooperation “student - teacher - group” system is created. The concept of learning has received practical implementation in a number of options for the technology of such learning, proposed by American educators.
If you combine international students in small groups (3–4 people) and give them a common task, specify the role of each in performing the task, then a situation arises in which each is responsible not only for the outcome of his work, but which is especially important for this learning technology, for the result of the whole group. Together, the task is solved, and the better international students help the weaker ones in the success of its implementation. This is the general idea of collaborative learning, and to complete the learning task, the study group is formed in such a way as to have both strong and weak students in learning L2. The evaluation of the completed task is done one per group.
It is important to note that when preparing educational activities in accordance with the technology of cooperation, the individual independent study of the international student becomes the initial part of the collective activity. Collaborative learning techniques are implemented during implementation by international students, game tasks, communication situations. For mastering a language, an important condition is communication in the target language.
Cooperative learning means learning in the process of communicating with other international students, and intentional cooperative work allows you to increase interest in courses and significantly increase speaking time for each international student.
Encourage critical thinking, use new technologies and develop resilience among students. They shouldn't fear the changes that will take place in their life, rather accept them and have the confidence to adapt to any situation (Bărbuleț, 2021, p. 371).
Conclusions
Crompton and Burke (2018) showed a synthesis of research on m-learning in the years 2010–2016 for higher education settings. The motivation of this research is to find results on methodologies, educational level, and educational context (p. 52).
Regarding the practical application of technologies, it is not at all necessary to use a single technology. It is best to integrate more educational technologies, combining their best aspects of them.
Being engaged in the integration of modern educational technologies in the process of teaching a foreign language to form the communicative competence of the international student, for many years, studying, testing and carefully adapting the innovative ideas of Romanian language teachers, we can conclude that this particular pedagogical system contributes to the education and improvement of each international student, giving him the opportunity to realize himself as a person.
Digital technology becomes, in the context of conducting online courses, the foundation of completely renewed and progressive traditions of skills training and development, allowing interaction and, especially, the development and innovation of practices (Burtea-Cioroianu, 2022, p. 140).
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10 April 2023
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Cite this article as:
Magdalena Pruneanu, D. (2023). Benefits Of Modern Learning Technologies In Teaching Romanian As L2. In E. Soare, & C. Langa (Eds.), Education Facing Contemporary World Issues - EDU WORLD 2022, vol 5. European Proceedings of Educational Sciences (pp. 1444-1451). European Publisher. https://doi.org/10.15405/epes.23045.147