Students Concern Of ICT Implementation In The Classroom

Abstract

The technological changes and processes have major implications for the structure and goals of the educational institutions. It can be said that the integration of ICT resources in education is beneficial and leads to an increase in school performance, provided that students have knowledge of computer use. This involves the introduction of IT and ICT classes for all profiles and all levels of education. In this article, we try to present an important problem, based on the multidimensional interactivity, the use of ICT in teaching a foreign language. Based on new information technologies, our education should not remain indifferent and instill solid knowledge to all students. Teachers are responsible for the appropriation of communication skills. Penetration of these technologies in education should be seen as an additional and decisive asset that takes into account the realities and demands of today’s society. The classes should be equipped with modern computers connected to the Internet. Teachers should possess in addition to theoretical and practical knowledge and skills pertaining to the studied discipline, the use of ICT. ICT should not only be a tool to present existing content in a new manner, it should lead to changes in thinking and working style classroom teachers crystallized into centuries of traditional education, too little concerned with the student’s personality and opportunities.

Keywords: ICTforeign language teachingforeign language learninglearning strategies

Introduction

The starting point of this reflection on the multidimensional interactivity in teaching-learning a

language is based on the finding that the new technologies hold a large offer of materials, which supports

the language didactics. The condition is an innovative, multidimensional approach where complementary

factors are present in the teaching process. In our case, what determined our research was the need to

overcome the routine of teaching, which no longer met current dynamics. It also highlights that new

technologies have a rich supply of materials, which support the didactics of foreign languages. It evokes

the need to underline the theoretical and methodological terms of integration and use of technologies to

achieve interactivity in teaching foreign languages.

Knowledge is the basis of modern languages and means of communication and interaction.

The main Purpose of this Research

The main purpose of this research is to demonstrate the effectiveness of using new information technologies and communication applied to teaching foreign languages (Warchauer, & Healey, 1998).

The research is determined by the existence of theoretical and practical concerns of language trainers.

Furthermore, we focus on the following objectives:

• Identify the reference documents at European level; studying how multimedia supports are correlated with traditional media used in teaching foreign languages;

• Identify the computer tools for teaching;

• Determine research methodology by basing methodologyskills development in students’ language acquisition target by applying new technologies;

• Propose new approaches in this field by introducing a new methodology rendition;

• Determine formative potential of new technologies for their effective integration;

• Reveal skills that can be cultivated;

• Study relations that arise in a digital pedagogy; establish new mandatory the teaching profession; analysis of cognitive and motivational dimensions of the students;

• Apply new information technologies in the development or acquisition of communication skills;

• Realize a pedagogical experiment to determine the need for training oral skills;

• Use a compendium of digital instruments activities.

The novelty of the article lies in underling the theoretical and practical aspects, that also concern

the language trainers. Interactive learning deals with changes in the manner of teaching (the adoption of

new and innovative strategies) and learning (students become actors of learning). Pedagogical interest

leads to a diversification of learning tools. Pedagogical approach helps mobilize knowledge technologies

and skills to train communication skills. They sensitize and motivate language learners, identify

knowledge, and realize the self-assessment approach. Using ICT in school generates a new innovative

approach. Authentic documents are diverted from their social function and directed by pedagogical,

thereby building intercultural and cognitive skills, because it provides exposure to the language.

Innovation strategies in language didactics have an important position considering

the teaching process. Innovation through ICT needs teaching.

From the point of view of general didactics strategies, it can be defined a system of methods,

procedures, means and forms of organization of the training / self-integrated operational structures, which

are based on a systemic vision and which are designed to ensure active learning and creative knowledge

and skills. Characteristics of training strategies include: forms the dynamic and open learning situations

characterized by flexibility; position training strategies which structure and shape different learning

situations and trigger psychological mechanisms; components of instructional strategies; establish

connections between interrelationships and interdependencies; teaching strategy aiming the whole

training process; strategies being assimilated with the lesson as they can and must be harnessed not only

during lessons and teaching activities performed in the classroom, but in all types of activities;

probabilistic, stochastic strategies. There are a large number of variables and sub-variants involved in this

process.

When determining the teaching strategies, we must consider several criteria: pedagogical and

didactic general conception of that period, the main orientations of teaching and personal conception of

the teacher, general teaching system and the principles of study; general objectives, framework; nature

and specific scientific content of the educational activity; it can be taught and assimilated in different

ways, depending on the role of the teacher or student; classroom particularities (number of students,

degree of homogeneity, level of education, intellectual development, age and individual peculiarities, the

motivational system of interests and aspirations, skills, etc.); experience and student learning type (the

most effective strategies are those that promote the kind of active and creative learning); the nature and

form of the evaluation samples; didactic equipping, school facilities, school space features; personality

and scientific competence, pedagogical and methodical teacher, style, ingenuity and creativity.

There are a variety of diversification strategies that involve teaching us information, collaboration,

communication and efficiency. Technologies determine a true reflection on the strategies to follow. The

student’s innovation through ICT brings motivation, access to information, collaboration by interactivity.

Integrating ICT into school work represents a real motivation because different interactive learning

environments appear. To ensure student motivation using new technologies must be guaranteed their ICT

and pedagogical conditions in an attractive environment (Osler, & Starkey, 2005). Whatever activities

organized around these new media, they offer students extra motivation. It showed that an imperative of

the new pedagogy is supported student autonomy and it can be seen as a form of freedom. The main

objectives are:

-Provide technical knowledge and skills to develop activities with multimedia digital video and

audio resources for language learning;

-Provide general knowledge about websites offering relevant information on the use of digital

resources activities with multimedia video and audio in language teaching;

-Increase awareness of pedagogical and methodological skills required to implement effectively the

video and audio multimedia digital resources in the classroom and design of multimedia materials

useful for language teaching.

The activities include: examples of linguistic activities, based on digital audio and video resources;

technical information: audio and video formats, players, streaming; use of multimedia activities on the

web development of a web-based tasks with materials; audio and video communication.

We can notice the students’ interest in learning foreign languages using music, pictures and role play,

based on multimedia tools. We all know that these supports can combine text, graphics, audio, video,

animation, stimulating the communication. The programs that we have experienced here show definite

advantages of multimedia tools: presents the content in a realistic way, which results in effective

communication (conversation, discussion or debate); provide samples of authentic language and cultural

information, vocabulary, morphological and syntactic structures, repetitive text by listening without

diminution or loss of motivation.

We highlighted the benefits of using the computer as offering activities:

• Stimulating the interest in capturing attention, thus eliminating risks due to routine or boredom;

• Development of logical and creative thinking by involving students in solving problems;

• More possibilities of forming communicative competence;

• Stimulating the imagination through the use of computer games;

• Individualization of training, specific programs with quality eLearning to enable students to learn according to their own pace;

• Feedback, facilitating their prompt correction and leading to empowerment of learners;

• Objective assessment, with tests and corrected programs.

• Involve students in the permanent education, preparing students for this lifestyle;

• Promotion of open and distance learning through the use of internet and other multimedia sources.

The experimental approach aimed at highlighting the importance of ICT in motivating students

and the need to improve oral communication skills. Thus, the process of formation and development of

competence has been the effective oral communication, influencing and stakeholders in the teaching

process. Therefore, students are more motivated in foreign languages election (95%), with a new style of

teaching, which helps to build and improve technologies oral communication skills (85.53%). Interactions

that arises in the classroom creates a climate of confidence in which students display their autonomy and

creativity. Collaboration is no longer seen as a shadow of some formal and highlighting others, but an

area of cooperation where each has its own task leading towards a common goal. Our research results led

to the following conclusions:

1.Interactivity requires a collaboration between the human being and the computer and gives birth to

a series of interactions when using in the classroom, both between students and between students

and teacher.

2.Multimedia revitalizes, reactivates the educational process, reforming profession of educator and

learner role shift from passive actor to an active learning.

3.Technologies influences mentalities and favors the concrete, relying on the experience of tradition,

they become new landmarks of school.

4.In this collaborative venture, electronic media documents are completely essential and have

cognitive properties for the learning process.

5.Media proves to be a challenge.

6.Integration of new technologies in education is considered today as a key competence

of the teachers. Didactics can not oppose progress and informatics. Thus, such multimedia

products penetrate more and more in language didactics. These technologies are no longer just

supports or aids, but elements based on learning, because communicating in a foreign language is

being provided by media (Osler, & Starkey, 2005).

7.A compendium of possible activities, based on technological media. They are provided as a

reference point for teachers of foreign languages, starting and running activities supported

exclusively on new media.

Applied at the beginning of a learning period of training, these strategies designate initial

assessment that can reveal both the preparedness of students in terms knowledge and skills needed. It

consists in identifying skills, attitudes and misconceptions, helping to identify the learning needs of each

student. The initial assessment is useful at the beginning of the course (the stage of familiarization /

upgrade); it prepares learning through a fertile context for building new knowledge. It can be said that the

initial assessment has a diagnostic function because one can estimate the extent to which subjects have

the prerequisites for learning the new content and training / development of other / same skills (Veen,

Win & Vrakking, 2011). Meanwhile, the initial assessment gives the teacher information on how should

organize a teaching approach suited to the situation. Among the assessment tools used for this purpose,

we mention: examination of student work; student portfolio; graphic organizers (conceptual maps,

classification schemes, activities Sequential lists priorities).

The most used online platform to create assessment tests is Moodle. It provides an opening for

stimulating interest in new; stimulating the imagination; setting up a virtual learning environment;

teaching optimization through multiple examples; supporting a large number of students with feedback;

intellectual formation of the young generation through self-education; learning at your own pace, without

emotions and stress; monitoring advanced individual work; generate, store and manage an unlimited

number of courses and sample test items; objective assessment of the results.

At the end of a unit, it is appropriate to provide students multiple opportunities to demonstrate

their learning such as reports, essays, realization of demonstration / performance art that allow students to

highlight procurement relating to content, skills and their learning. They must be: complex enough to

engage students in a real process of thinking and practical demonstration of skills; open enough to

encourage different approaches, but closed enough to allow a fair assessment.

The investigating effort to create the methodological and conceptual premises, not only for the

implementation of ICT within the foreign languages, but to the related areas also, helps to modernizing

and improving the educational process, keeping up to date the teacher’s education and involves the

integration of technology in teaching time. This leads to the implementation of linguistic skills

development of the students’ creativity and initiative, teamwork through integration of personal

experience in the group. Pedagogical integration leads to media usage skills development for performing

tasks. The use of technologies is urgently needed not only due to the integration of ICT(Ilie, &

Jugureanu, 2008). It is necessary to consider two essential elements: language skills/ communication and

IT. Being aware of the complexity and long duration of activities involving ICT implementation, we underline the following directions:

• Romanian teaching systems’ synchronization to European requirements.

• Inclusion of innovations in professional activity for an improved effectiveness of teaching.

• Integration of new technologies in school that improves the quality

teaching - learning, bringing added value. Thus, teachers reappraise conceptions on

learning and the value of some activities implemented; technology should be considered as a

tool in addition to many others, a part of a coherent pedagogical structure; teachers must

work in a context that facilitates collaboration and continuous improvement; integrating

technologies should be considered a long process.

Conclusions

In recent years, several EU governments have initiated programs for major ICT investment. These

actions occurred largely independently and asynchronously, but it had the effect of increasing rapid

expansion of connections for ICT in schools and in higher education institutions. These differences

should be monitored and recovered quickly to minimize variation of e-Learning development in Europe

(Niemiec, & Ryan, 2009). Evidence shows that the use of ICT in education can overcome obstacles in

providing in-depth involvement in the education of marginalized groups. The online learning

communities with tools and specific e-Learning have been shown to enhance social cohesion and the link between European citizens in the formation of virtual education centers (Ionescu, & Radu, 2004).

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