Iryna Sarafyniuk
Vinnytsia State M.Kotsyubynskyi Pedagogical University
Scientific Supervisor: T.A. Dovhaliuk, PhD
THE INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT OF THE SKILLS IN READING AUTHENTIC TEXTS AND SPEAKING ENGLISH IN UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL
Teaching and learning of foreign languages, English in particular, is one of the main priorities of the modern education system in Ukraine. No person in contemporary world can do without the knowledge of at least one international foreign language and the ability to use it properly and purposefully. In connection with this, a foreign language teacher should set the following tasks:
- formation of learner’s critical thinking skills;
- preparation for successful teamwork;
- development of the ability to analyze future communication situations and choose the optimal means, style and form of communication;
- development of creativity.
A special approach to teaching/learning a foreign language is needed to successfully implement the requirements of the modern state educational standard. One of the means to do so is the use of authentic real-life materials in lessons.
Authentic text is defined as a text that was created to fulfil some social purpose in the language community in which it was produced [3]. The term “authentic” has been used as a reaction against the prefabricated patterns of the textbooks while authentic texts were the non-pedagogical texts used to help learners improve not only their communicative but also their cultural competences [4].
Authentic materials − also known as realia − can be described as anything created for native speakers of a language, we can use for our teaching purposes. With the changing linguistic boundaries, it is now widely known as materials that include ideas, words, phrases and expressions that are heard and read in real-life situations [2].
Reading, as a language skill, is one of the central tasks of the foreign language teaching methodology. That is why the description of teaching/learning to read is presented in all known methods of teaching foreign languages.
Reading is presented for the purpose of learning a foreign language at every level of foreign language proficiency. At the same time, it should be noted that reading is understood in two ways in the teaching methodology: as the goal of learning and as a means of learning a foreign language in primary school. In the educational process, it is necessary to clearly distinguish between these two functions, since they determine the methodical organization of the entire work.
Reading as a goal involves extracting information from the text to supplement one’s knowledge. In this case, I.L. Beam understands reading as one of the “most important types of communicative and cognitive activity of students, which is aimed at extracting information from a written text”[1].
Using authentic texts to teach reading and speaking in English has a number of advantages. First, authentic texts are more diverse in terms of style and subject matter, convey real emotions related to real life, and therefore, cause greater interest and motivation for learning in general and speaking in particular. Secondly, when working with an authentic text, learners do not just read specially created educational texts and perform exercises from a textbook, but learn from various sources − the Internet, articles from magazines or news, real facts and events from the life of a specific country and people. Using such materials and teaching aids, we immerse students in the natural environment of the language they are learning [4].
Another advantage of authentic texts and authentic materials in general is their great variety. It can be newspapers, articles in magazines, blogs on the Internet, videos on the desired topic and films, art books and many others [1].
The use of such materials in the lesson will not only help in the active learning of new vocabulary, lexical combinations and grammatical structures, but will also allow to develop the ability to think analytically and analyze what has been read, to express one’s opinion based on real facts and events [4].
Reading and speaking are one of the most important types of communicative and cognitive activity of learners. Using authentic texts, newspapers, and magazine articles to develop reading and speaking skills, learners expand their language knowledge and acquire up-to-date information. Journalism as a means of mass information is a part of culture, reflecting the realities of countries. In addition, a newspaper or a magazine is not just a source of texts, but also a source for the integrated development of reading and speaking strategies.
Therefore, the process of integrated development of the skills of reading authentic texts and speaking in English is crucial for the expansion of the linguistic practical knowledge of high school students. That way they not only passively acquire relevant real-life information during reading but also learn to actively process it and use meaningfully while speaking.
References
- Вишневський О. І. Методика навчання іноземних мов : навчальний посібник. К. : Знання, 2011. 206 с.
- Kalko V. O. Developing English reading skills of secondary school students [Electronic resource] / V. O. Kalko. – Access mode: http://fl.knlu.edu.ua/article/view File/ 122496/117331.
- Kramsch, Claire.(2010).Context and Culture in LanguageTeaching, OUP.
- Little, D. G. and D.M. Singleton. (1988) Authentic Materials and the Role of Fixed Support in Language Teaching: Towards a Manual for Language Learners. Dublin; Trinity centre for Language and Communication Studies.
- Widdowson, Henry G. (1990). Aspects of Language Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.