Педагогические
науки/5. Современные методы преподавания.
Olga
Ovadiuk
Role - playing in learning English
for professional purposes
As
Oxford English Dictionary states - role-playing is the acting out or
performance of a particular role, either consciously (as a technique in
psychotherapy or training) or unconsciously, in accordance with the perceived
expectations of society as regards to a person's behaviour in a particular
context.
To provide
the foreign language acquisition in graduates of non-linguistic higher
education institutions and to teach them how to form and express thoughts in
everyday communication and in the sphere of corresponding speciality is the
leading aim of studying the English language for professional purposes.
Let us dwell
upon a role and a place of role playing studies in learning English for
professional purposes (EPP) by students of technical specialities in non-linguistic
higher education institutions. Speaking activity does not exist per se, but is
carried out in the process of social interaction. Therefore, it is possible to
master language means without contacting other people, but mastering speaking
skills is possible through communication only.
In methodical literature, role-playing is determined
as spontaneous behaviour of students, their reaction to the actions of other
people that participate in an imaginary situation. Role-playing is a
multifunctional phenomenon. We can distinguish such aims of role-playing as
practical, motivational, communicative and developing. Carefully prepared and
well conducted role playing facilitates introduction and drilling of language
material (vocabulary, grammar, phonetics) and is one of the most effective
means of studying all types of language activities ( listening, speaking,
reading and writing).
For
realization of role playing on technical topics students must have a certain
level of speaking and professional training. First of all, it concerns
knowledge of technical vocabulary.
Role-playing
is based on finding solutions for outlined problems, therefore providing
maximal communicative activity of students. While role-playing students master
such elements of communication, as ability to begin conversation, develop it,
interrupt it, listen to the opponent's point of view and put qualifying
questions.
Raising and solving
a problem helps to develop the critical and logical thinking of
students-engineers, their ability to argue, to explain and convince the
participant of the conversation. Moreover, students get the possibility to
learn how to explain certain technical and engineering phenomena using the
language, which is clear to the people distant from technical issues. Participating
in role playing for professional purposes gives students an opportunity to try
themselves in a role of a designer, a personnel manager or a customer, to
master norms of professional behaviour, to use and combine knowledge of
engineering disciplines with skills to communicate in English. The
communicative situation that is patterned in role-playing allows to approximate
speaking activity at a lesson to a real communication, giving an opportunity to
use a language as communicative means.
During practical
lessons that is preceded role playing, it is necessary to apply various lexical, grammatical and other types
of games with the aim of preparation of students for roleplaying itself,
removal of psychological and language barriers and creation of a corresponding
lesson atmosphere.
The aims of
role-playing are the perfection of skills of use of professional technical
vocabulary in the dialogical speech and the development of writing skills.
Auditorium work includes the introduction of lexical material and its drilling
in phonetic, lexical and speaking exercises.
Role-playing is an original type of practice and
experience close to professional.
Being based on
a long-term experience of teaching, it is possible to assert that due to
memorizing, reading, implementation of the exercises and role-playing the level
of professionally oriented vocabulary rises considerably. Thus, a process of
forming professionally oriented lexical competence of students of technical
specialities will be more effective in the context of amount of mastered
lexical units.
Depending on the
lesson topic and imagination of the teacher, role-playing can be varied.
Motivation of
students rises at the achievement of certain results. The main task of a
teacher is to develop not only skills students can use at an English lesson but
also at the lessons of professional disciplines and in future activity of an
engineer as well.
By means of this
type of activity the most intense mastering of terminology and professional
vocabulary by the students of different specialities is taking place. Sequence
of exercises, beginning from uncommunicative, then conditionally communicative
and ending with communicative exercises with a role-playing component and
methods of problem based learning (PBL), provides the continuous instillation
of communicative skills, forming and improving the abilities of the
professionally oriented speaking.
Литература:
1. Полат
Е. С. Современные педагогические и информационные технологии в системе
образования: учебн. пособие для студентов высших учебных заведений/ Е. С.
Полат, М. Ю. Бухаркина. - М. Академия, 2007
2. Ladousse G. Role Play/ Ladousse, G. – L.: Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992. – 181 p.
3.
Littlewood
W. Teaching Oral Communication: a Methodological Framework/ Littlewood, W. – L.: Oxford: Blackwell, 1992 –
p.82-83
4. Livingstone C. Role Play in Language Learning/ Livingstone, C. – L.:
London: Longman,
1983. – 94 p.