GAME AS ONE OF THE EFFECTIVE
METHODS OF TEACHING ENGLISH IN CLASS
The subject of the present article overviews the main problems connected with teaching English in class. The purpose of this work is to discover the most effective way of teaching a foreign language to children.
Nowadays it is still urgent to discuss what to teach and how to teach a foreign language taking into account the objective social and professional needs of future specialists in our country. The situation with foreign language teaching in Ukrainian universities is in some ways different from that of many European countries. In Ukraine, students who master all specialties have foreign languages on their curricula as major subject for two or three years during the full course. Thus, our students not only want to learn foreign languages, but also have to learn them as part of their syllabus. The growing interest to the English language has led to emergence of a great variety of English teaching methods, books and other resources. It seems that such a great variety of resourses must simplify the process of teaching. Moreover, technological achievement has become a focus of today’s society. It is very unusual to find anyone who lacks computer skills, and an access to Internet made it possible to get detailed information in every sphere. The field of the English language teaching is not an exception.
There are some effective ways and techniques of teaching a foreign language [2, 14–33]: constructivist teaching strategy (includes experimentation, research projects, field trips, films, class discussions), communicative teaching method, project methods, the method of debates, language game and role play.
I'd like to review one of the effective methods of teaching English - a language game. Many experienced textbook and methodology manuals writers have argued that games are not just time-filling activities but have a great educational value. W. R. Lee states that most language games make learners use the language instead of thinking about learning the correct forms. He also says that games should be treated as central not peripheral parts of the foreign language teaching program [1, 179]. A similar opinion is expressed by Richard-Amato, who believes games to be fun but warns against overlooking their pedagogical value, particularly in foreign language teaching. There are many advantages of using games. "Games can lower anxiety, thus making the acquisition of input more likely" (Richard-Amato) [5, 88]. They are highly motivating and entertaining, and they can give shy students more opportunity to express their opinions and feelings (Hansen) [5, 32]. They also enable learners to acquire new experience within a foreign language which is not always possible during a typical lesson. Furthermore, they "add diversion to the regular classroom activities," break the ice, "they are used to introduce new ideas". In the easy, relaxed atmosphere which is created by using games, students remember things faster and better. Further support comes from Zdybiewska, who believes games to be a good way of practising language. They provide a model of what learners will use the language for in real life in the future. Games encourage, entertain, teach and promote fluency. If not for any of these reasons, they should be used just because they help students see beauty in a foreign language and not just problems [4, 75]. Teachers should be very careful about choosing games if they want to make them profitable for the learning process. If games are to bring desired results, they must correspond to the student's level, their age and to the material that is to be introduced or practised. Not all the games are appropriate for all students irrespective of their age. Different age groups require various topics, materials and modes of games. For example, children benefit most from games which require moving around, imitating a model, competing between groups and the like. Furthermore, structural games that practise or reinforce a certain grammatical aspect of language have to relate to students' abilities and prior knowledge. Games become difficult when the task or the topic is unsuitable or outside the student's experience. Another factor influencing the choice of a game is its length and the time necessary for its completion. Many games have a time limit, but according to Siek-Piskozub, the teacher can either allocate more or less time depending on the students' level, the number of people in a group, or the knowledge of the rules of a game etc. [4, 36].
Games are often used as short warm-up activities or when there is some time left at the end of a lesson. Yet, as Lee observes, a game "should not be regarded as a marginal activity filling in odd moments when the teacher and class have nothing better to do" [3, 165]. Games ought to be at the heart of teaching foreign languages. Rixon suggests using a game at all stages of the lesson, provided that they are suitable and carefully chosen [4, 44]. Games are also effective as revision exercises helping learners recall material in a pleasant and entertaining way. All the authors referred to in this article agree that even if games result only in noise and entertained students, they are still worth paying attention to and implementing in the classroom since they motivate learners, promote communicative competence and generate fluency.
From all above-stated it is possible to draw the following conclusion. For achievement of the purpose the works of home and foreign authors on the given problem have been studied. In formation of interest to a subject the huge role is played by the teacher. Therefore, a pledge of successful mastering a foreign language by the pupils is professionalism of the teacher who doesn’t only take into account the methodical principles underlying teaching, but also is in constant search of new receptions and means of teaching which will recover a lesson, will make it fascinating, cognitive and remembered.
Література
1. Brown, H. D. Teaching by principles: An attractive approach to language pedagogy / H. D. Brown; New York: Longman, 2001 – 211 p.
2. Haycraft John. An Introduction to English Language Teaching / J. Haycraft; London: Longman, 1986. - 148 p.
3. Lee W.R. Language Teaching Games and Contests / W.R. Lee; USA: Oxford University Press, 1979 - 208 p.
4. Nunan David. Communicative Language Teaching / D. Nunan; Canada: ESL, 1988 – 204 p.
5. Richard-Amato A. Patricia. Making It Happen: From Interactive to Participatory Language Teaching – Evolving Theory and Practice. Pearson Education / A. P. Richard-Amato; Canada: ESL, 2010 – 599 p. / A. P. Richard-Amato; Canada: ESL, 2010 – 599 p.
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