Ivanova I.V. The use of a multimedia presentation at the primary school lessons of English

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Іванова Інга Володимирівна – студентка Педагогічного інституту Київського університету імені Бориса Грінченка, спеціальність «Початкова освіта», кафедра іноземних мов і методик їх навчання Київського університету імені Бориса Грінченка


У статті проаналізовано роль мультимедійної презентації на уроках англійської мови у початковій школі; проведено порівняння традиційного та мультимедійного навчання; розглянуто основні програмні засоби, переваги та недоліки мультимедійної презентації; подані зразки її використання на різних етапах уроку англійської мови.

Ключові слова: мультимедіа, мультимедійна презентація, початкова школа.


В статье проанализирована роль мультимедийной презентации на уроках английского языка в начальной школе; проведено сравнение традиционного и мультимедийного обучения; рассмотрены основные программные средства, преимущества и недостатки мультимедийной презентации; представлены образцы ее использования на разных этапах урока английского языка.

Ключевые слова: мультимедиа, мультимедийная презентация, начальная школа.


The role of a multimedia presentation at the primary school lessons of English has been analysed in the article; a comparison of traditional and multimedia educations has been made; software tools, advantages and drawbacks of a multimedia presentation have been considered; some samples of its use at various stages of the English lesson have been given.

Key words: multimedia, multimedia presentation, primary school.


Зміст

Problem setting

According to the standard of the primary education learning the English language begins in the first class of primary schools. This increases primary school teachers’ responsibility as they lay the foundation for further development of practical skills. Multimedia presentation is one of the means which help to make educational process easier.


Last scientific researches and publications analysis

Today a lot of theoretical and experimental works of native and foreign scholars are devoted to the problem of implementation and effective use of multimedia technology in education. Among those investigations we should mention the works of Y. Kazakov, A. Shevchenko [2; 7], who have disclosed pedagogical conditions for the use of multimedia in education. Some aspects of the information technology use in the primary school educational process were studied by O. Suhovirskoho, V. Shakotko, O. Schiemann [5; 6; 8]. In addition, several authors (Y. Gromovyj, I. Moturnak) shared some practical experience of using multimedia at the primary stage of training [1; 3]. All above-mentioned indicates the continuous interest of teachers and practitioners to find the ways of effective multimedia use. So, the problem of using multimedia at the primary school lessons of English still remains insufficiently investigated.


Formulation of the article’s purpose

The purpose of the article is to characterize the features of using a multimedia presentation at the primary school lessons of English.


The statement of basic material of investigation

Multimedia presentation is a special interactive technology, the combination of special hardware and software programs that can contain a text, pictures, graphics, slide shows, sound effects, and oral speech accompaniment, movies and animations. Nowadays multimedia presentation is one of the most common and useful means to illustrate educational material. It provides opportunities of making a learner’s interaction with virtual objects or processes of cognition that are reflected on the screen. The use of a multimedia presentation allows creating an informative and visual image of the object. It also contributes to simulating the reality through participation in the processes which take place on the screen.


Multimedia presentations give a teacher the opportunity of visualizing static and dynamic information conveniently and effectively, of preparing tasks and selecting educational materials. Depending on how they are used multimedia can provide motivation for learning and becоme an alternative to traditional assessment.


The comparison of the traditional and multimedia educations is given in Table 1 [4, c. 5-9]. According to the table we can assume that the multimedia education has more diversified characteristics than the traditional one. The former provides the significant advantages in teaching foreign languages.


Let’s consider some features of the multimedia technology. They are as follows:

  • Image quality - bright, crisp and colorful screen;
  • Convenient explanation of the type of work with different accessories;
  • Slight deficiencies and errors in the slides;
  • Growth productivity;
  • Established links between subjects;
  • Change of an attitude towards PC: children begin to perceive it as a universal tool for work in any area of human activity, not only as a means for a game.


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In order to create a multimedia presentation teachers may use well-known software tools such as Microsoft PowerPoint, Macromedia Flash, Picasa, Photodex ProShow etc. Here are the descriptions of the programs. Microsoft PowerPoint is a combination of slide styles, custom graphics, audio files and animations, which make presentations a much better choice than using a standard projector screen. A text and image sizes can be changed easily according to pupils' needs. The ability to implement photos, audio and video aids makes primary school lessons of English much more interesting and will keep pupils attentive better than a typical lecture or textbook.


Teachers can develop presentations that are far more interesting with Macromedia Flash. One of the Macromedia Flash tools has become popular is the use of Macromedia Flash quizzes. The quizzes allow students to answer questions online, and be informed of their score either after every question or at the end of the quiz. This tool is useful because it allows students to access study materials similar to actual quizzes they take in the classroom and practice for their performance. If the quiz is for assessment, it frees up time for instructors by eliminating the grading component of quizzes and tests and creating a digital database of student's scores [9].


Picasa makes it easy to isolate static and dynamic images from the Internet, design a slide show conveniently and quickly. Also Picasa educational films add to the draft text and audio notes and to collages creation from still images. There are many ready-made multimedia presentations that are focused on junior pupils and widely available: «Sing And Learn English», "Mouse Mia teaches language", "World of Words", "English with Winnie The Pooh" etc.


On the one hand, using multimedia presentations in elementary school has some advantages. The first one is motivation. This is important as we must first draw pupils’ attention before they are ready to learn. This especially concerns 6-year-old pupils. Multimedia allows a primary school teacher to make his English lessons entertaining, therefore, it completely involves pupils in the educational process. The second advantage is that multimedia is a great way to make sure the teacher’s lessons are organized. There are many multimedia tools that the teacher can use to help organize his presentation; therefore, it simplifies the topic understanding. The third advantage is that it allows providing differentiated instructions. Pupils relate to visual interactions, especially if there is a game like atmosphere to the presentation. Having different ways to present information to our students allows teachers to meet the needs of all students. The fourth advantage is that the real world is exposed to children. Unfortunately children can’t hear native speakers, but multimedia gives them this opportunity. Through this multimedia prepares them for the future development of the listening skills. The last advantage is that multimedia images stimulate the imagination of pupils. By the appropriate use of multimedia courseware interwoven in the visual and auditory three-dimensional spaces can urge children to start their imagination and enrich the content of it. So, by recycling colorful pictures of a presentation, pupils move from abstract material to the concrete topic, from boring explanations to the visual image.


On the other hand, it has some drawbacks. Multimedia requires high-end computer systems. Sound, images, animation, and especially video, constitute large amounts of data, which slow down, or may not even fit in a low-end computer. Unlike simple text files created in word processing, multimedia packages require computers of high quality. The major drawback of writing multimedia courseware is that it may not be accessible to a large number of its intended users if the latter do not have access to the suitable computers. To avoid that the courseware developers should think very carefully about the type of multimedia elements which need to be incorporated into applications and include only those having significant value.


Multimedia has other weak points. If the computer equipment meets all the requirements for multimedia use a primary school teacher must possess the minimum level of computer literacy to deal with the software and to apply it into the educational process at the English lessons.


A multimedia presentation can be used at various stages of the lesson. Some samples of using multimedia presentation at various stages of the English lesson are given in Table 2. The table confirms the apparent necessity of a multimedia presentation use at any stage of the lesson.

Selecting a specific product depends on the following factors:

  • Support of the educational process in a particular educational institution.
  • The level of training of teachers and students to use multimedia.
  • Ergonomic requirements for multimedia products.
  • Requirements for the content of educational material.


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Conclusion

Multimedia is a combination of different media operated by a single technology. Multimedia presentations give an opportunity of visualizing static and dynamic information. There are some software tools such as Microsoft PowerPoint, Macromedia Flash, Picasa, Photodex ProShow etc.


Integrating different media is to show the teaching materials clearly, interestingly and systematically, and to present the information to the students easily. Using multimedia in the English teaching process can improve its quality. Teaching English will be more efficient. Using multimedia can catch pupils’ interest. Besides, the pupils will be motivated in learning English. They will also grasp the lesson idea easily. Schools should improve their educational process and provide primary school teachers with the needed computer equipment, so that multimedia presentations will be widely used, particularly at the English lessons.


References

  1. Громовий В. ІКТ у школі: можливість чи загроза? / В. Громовий // Управління освітою . – 2009 . – № 3 . – С. 5
  2. Казаков Ю.М. Педагогічні умови застосування медіаосвіти в процесі професійної підготовки майбутніх учителів: автореф. дис. ... канд. пед. наук : 13.00.04 / Юрій Миколайович Казаков. – Луганськ, 2007. – 21с.
  3. Мотурнак Є. Упровадження інформаційно-комунікаційних технологій у навчальному закладі / Є. Мотурнак // Практика управління закладом освіти. – 2012 . – № 5 . – С. 21-28
  4. Скалій Л. І. Використання інформаційних технологій у формуванні професійної компетенції майбутнього вчителя іноземних мов / Л. І. Скалій // Іноземні мови. – 2003. – №4. – С.5-9.
  5. Суховірський О.В. Підготовка майбутнього вчителя початкової школи до використання інформаційних технологій : дис. ... канд. пед. наук : 13.00.04. / Олег Васильович Суховірський. – К., 2005. – 220 с.
  6. Шакотько В.В. Методика використання ІКТ у початковій школі / В.В. Шакотько – К. : Комп’ютер, 2008. – 128 с.
  7. Шевченко А.Л. Використання ІКТ у сучасній школі / А.Л. Шевченко // Педагогічна майстерня . – 2012 . – № 3 . – С. 2-7
  8. Шиман О.І. Формування основ інформаційної культури майбутніх учителів початкової школи : автореф. дис. … канд. пед. наук : 13.00.02 / Олександра Іванівна Шиман. – К., 2005. – 20 с.
  9. Nelson L. Interactive learning / L. Nelson // EHow. – 2010. – Режим доступу : http://www.ehow.com/interactive-learning.


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