Philology/ Methods of teaching language
Almaty Management University, Kazakhstan
Formation of perceptual activities in Foreign Language Learning
In compliance with modern researches, the primary
difference between a bored class and an absorbed class lies in how creative the
teaching techniques are. It is critically important to keep the teaching material
interesting, actual and to make it applicable for practical use. There is no
doubt that in order to truly learn the materials (as opposed to merely
memorizing them); students must be involved in interesting, interactive,
applicable and creative activities. “Creativity can be defined as production of
an idea or product that is innovative and meaningful. Creativity is about ways
we can reach beyond ourselves in our conventional lives, realities, and
consciousness, to access deeper ways of knowing, and even profound spiritual
realizations. There is a vital role for creativity studies in making the most
of our self-awareness, and furthering our human possibility” [1]. Many scholars
state that creativity, creative exercises and various tasks at foreign language
university classes are worth doing according to the following reasons. Creative
tasks:
1. Give
a real content, purpose, outcome or even a product (e.g. drawing and
explanation, etc.)
2. Help
students to practice language;
3. Provoke
students to think creatively;
4. Help
students practice diverse communication strategies (miming, pauses,
paraphrasing, etc.);
5. Help
students master creative ways of expression;
6. Help
to improve self-esteem as students can look at their own solutions to problems
and their own products and see what they are able to achieve;
7. In
the language classroom can lead to genuine communication and co-operation.
Students use the language to do the creative task, so they use it as a tool, in
its original function. This prepares them for using the foreign language
outside the classroom;
8. Enrich
classroom work, and they make it more varied and more enjoyable by tapping into
individual talents, ideas and thoughts – both the students’ and the teacher’s;
9. Help
to introduce creativity in real life. It is a part of our survival strategies
and it is a force behind personal growth and the development of culture and
society.
“We understand thought (thinking) as
the ideal component of the real activity of social people transforming both
external nature and themselves by their labor” [2]. The amount of information
available today is massive through the modern technology. This information
explosion is likely to continue in the future. Students need a guide to choose
the information they really use and not just passively accept it. Critical
thinking is essential for effective functioning in the modern world. Students
need to develop and effectively apply critical thinking skills to their
academic studies, to the complex problems that they face, and to the critical
choices, they will be forced to make because of the information explosion and
other rapid technological changes. Thinking combines the related structures and
processes of perception, memory, forming ideas, language and use of symbols -
the basic cognitive skills that underlie the ability to reason, to learn and to
solve problems. Although there are different definitions of the terms thinking
and critical thinking, each model describes similar elements of either thinking
or critical thinking or creative or both. “Thought and thinking are mental
forms and processes, respectively ("thought" is both). Thinking
allows beings to model the world and to deal with it according to their
objectives, plans, ends and desires’’ [3].
Doubtless, grammar is a key feature of language, but
learning English grammar is often challenging and difficult. By integrating
Scrabble, the learners can focus both on meaning and word forms and they will
not notice how much they are learning because playing Scrabble is so much fun.
Beside grammar Board Game Scrabble boosts a half dozen skill areas, as well as
critical thinking, social and personal skills.
Spatial relationship skills stretch as students plan words to fit
available spaces on the board, and for the most points. Thinking skills expand
in the exciting team atmosphere of word play, fostering unique opportunities
for creative and critical thinking without fear of judgment or poor grades.
Imagining, planning, evaluating options and decision-making are some of the
skills essential to team success. For future engineers, solution-driven
competences are very important as well as winning quality, since employers
greatly value employees who can identify problems and be relied upon to come up
with viable solutions. Board Game Scrabble develops board geometry, strategic
decision-making, probability and chance. However, nearly every player loves the
language part, too, the aesthetics of the letters and letter combinations, the
quirky definitions, the sheer breadth and beauty of English. “Scrabble is not only
a game of word knowledge, but also a game of mathematics and probabilities”
[4].
Literature
1.
Susan F.
Lafferty Overview of education in creativity and problem solving in four-year
colleges and universities. Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2004, 43 p.
2.
E.V. Ilyenkov and Creative Soviet Theory: An Introduction to
‘Dialectics of the Ideal’. 2012.
3.
URL:http://www.marxists.org/archive/ilyenkov/works/essays/essayint.htm
4.
URL:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thinking