Using Multimodality in Teaching Communication Skills to the Modern Generation [Articol]

Abstract

The impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on education in the last decades has been considerable. Undeniably, ICT continuously adds renewed interest to communication and learning. Modern educational approaches aim at teaching foreign languages (FL) by means of effective, differentiated methods, multimodality being one of them. A number of empirical studies have been conducted on the subject of using multimodal methods in FL teaching/ learning efficiently. Understanding how our brain works, and how people process the information best could be considered one of the most important aspects that guarantees educational success. Moreover, the actual choice of FL teaching methods depends not only on the level of mastery of the material, but also on the students‟ age, gender, learning conditions, learning styles, as well as on the availability of resources. An essential issue to consider, while using multimodality, is the VARK learning style model (visual, aural, read/ write, and kinesthetic) developed by N. Fleming, whose questionnaire results show the learners‟ sensory modality option in learning has a great influence on the quality of their knowledge. Multimodaliy is the blend of several modes of communication, i.e. images, music, sound, sight, print, and video that create meaning in a text. The present article considers the option of using multimodality in teaching English in a FL class to the digital generation.