Blended learning technologies for a foreign language teaching the students of non-philological majors

Abstract

Modern theories of foreign language teaching are getting developed. The constant society digitalization influences it. Generation Z students closely associate their lives with technology. Moreover, teachers must find ways to apply effectively information and communication technologies in the learning process. In our opinion, one of the ways is the concept of blended learning. It implies the optimal combination of traditional pedagogical technologies and distance, online learning. The purpose of our research is to examine the effectiveness of the concept of blended learning in the process of learning a foreign language for students of non-philological majors. For this purpose, we conducted a pedagogical experiment. It assumes the introduction of the concept of blended learning in the educational process of higher education. The research was carried out with Ukrainian students of non-philological majors during the study of English (offline and online). Also, international students who are studying Ukrainian as a foreign language were involved. Comparative analysis of students' readiness to learn using different blended learning tools was used. Methods of mathematical statistics (nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney criteria) were utilized to analyse and process the experimental data. The results of the study indicate the effectiveness of blended learning technology usage in the process of foreign language teaching. Nevertheless, they show that the proposed tools help students better master a foreign language. Besides, students are both in active learning and passively reinforcing their knowledge using digital technologies during education. The authors consider it indisputable that blended learning tools should be used to some extent for students of all majors. The authors understand that the proposed tools are not exhaustive and definitive. Their list should be extended, and the use of specific tools depends on the teacher, students, the course, and other factors.