AD ALTA
JOURNAL OF INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH
INNOVATIVE
INFORMATION
AND
COMMUNICATION
TECHNOLOGIES
FOR
ERGOTHERAPISTS APPLIED DURING ENGLISH LEARNING IN UKRAINE
a
ALLA KULICHENKO,
b
YURIY POLYEZHAYEV
a
Zaporizhzhia State Medical University, 26 Maiakovskoho Av.,
Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine 69035.
b
National University “Zaporizhzhia Polytechnic”, 64
Zhukovskoho Str., Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine 69063.
email:
a
alla.kulichenko@gmail.com,
b
yuriy.brikrio@gmail.com
Abstract: According to Ukrainian higher educational policy, there is an urgent need to
combine general competencies. Thus, the article aims at highlighting the use of
innovative information and communication technologies (ICTs) for ergotherapists
when learning English in Ukrainian higher educational establishments as types of such
competencies. To achieve the objective of research the authors have applied
theoretical and empirical methods. Besides, the authors are convinced that content and
language integrated learning (CLIL) is appropriate to apply with innovative
information and communication technologies when teaching a foreign language.
Moreover, the research describes how to use Lumowell, a YouTube channel, Quizlet,
and Zoom, free online educational platforms.
Keywords: content and language integrated learning, English, ergotherapists,
innovative information and communication technologies, self-study, Ukrainian higher
educational establishments.
1 Introduction
Modern education is undergoing an upgrade to meet the constant
challenges of society and scientific and technological progress.
There are new forms, types, methods, and means of organizing
the educational process aimed at providing the quality training of
a new generation of specialists and experts. Such specialists and
experts are to master a set of competencies declared in the higher
education standard for each speciality and approved at the
national level. Such a system is usually based on the so-called
“triad”, which is the integral competence, general and special
(professional) competencies. Note that the command of a foreign
language, its use in future professional activities, and the ability
to operate information and communication technologies is one of
the key general competencies in each higher education standard.
Nowadays, in the time of digitalization, when all the necessary
information is in a smartphone and a PC, students are no longer
interested in the traditional presentation of educational material
in the form of regular lectures and practical classes. Therefore,
the ability to turn smartphones and PCs into assistants as a part
of student-oriented models of arranging the educational process
continues to become more relevant (1) in developing a set of
competencies.
K. Ratheeswari states that “information and communication
technologies are making dynamic changes in society. They are
influencing all aspects of life. The influences are felt more and
more at schools. Because ICTs provide both students and
teachers with more opportunities in adapting learning and
teaching to individual needs, society is, forcing schools aptly to
respond to this technical innovation”. (2)
In the age of a major deterioration of health of the population in
Ukraine, there is a growing need for the revival of natural
approaches to addressing health problems, while the growing
demand for physical and rehabilitation services determine the
demand for high-level professionals capable of developing and
applying up-to-date integrated rehabilitation technologies to
restore, enhance and preserve the health of various
sociodemographic groups of the population. (3)
In this context, Ukraine has been witnessing a significant interest
in speciality No. 227 “Physical therapy, ergotherapy” of the first
(Bachelor) and the second (Master) levels of higher education,
which can be obtained either in medical or classical universities
that train specialists in numerous areas. According to
Yu. Lyannoy, “getting higher education in physical therapy
plays a fundamental role in ensuring professional identity and is
an important tool for promoting freedom of movement and the
right to the professional activity of physical therapy specialists in
Ukraine and foreign countries”. (4)
We thus consider it necessary to study the importance of
combining general competencies, i.e. integration of innovative
information and communication technologies into the
educational process and learning English by ergotherapists in
higher educational establishments of Ukraine. Unfortunately,
Ukrainian pedagogical space has covered this issue in a very
fragmented manner.
So, the objective of the research is to highlight the use of
innovative information and communication technologies
ergotherapists when learning English in Ukrainian higher
educational establishments.
2 Methods
To meet the goal of research we have applied such methods as
(i) theoretical ones: analysis, synthesis, generalization,
concretization – to study and systematize scientific and
referential literature on the problem of innovative information
and communication technologies in general and in particular for
future ergotherapists, their application during English learning in
Ukrainian higher educational establishments and (ii) empirical
one: diagnostic (surveys and interviews)
– to get relevant
feedback concerning a series of English classes with ICTs.
3 Results and discussion
Since we study ICTs applied in the educational process when
delivering English language classes to ergotherapists in
Ukrainian higher educational establishments, it is necessary to
first analyse the terminology of this study, namely: “information
and communication technologies” and “innovative information
and communication technologies”.
The term “information and communication technologies”
emerged in the 1980s and was used by researchers to refer to the
dual function of processing information and facilitating
communications. (5) Though, the term above was associated
with education in the late 1990s in the UK with the publishing of
the work titled “Information and Communications Technology
in UK Schools. An independent inquiry”. The authors of this
paper insisted that the role of ICT was to serve education: in
particular by helping students to learn more effectively and by
helping teachers to do their professional job. (6)
R. Hernandez points out that “teachers, faced with the
transformative vision of a society that needs to integrate ICTs
into the classroom, have seen their role change into that of
agents with the ability to generate the necessary skills for a
society “yearning” for technological knowledge and the frequent
use thereof in various educational matters”. (7) Thus, with the
introduction of ICTs in the educational process, the faculty turns
from authoritarian leaders into consultant-mentors (partners)
who should adapt themselves to changes, new interests, abilities,
and to create appropriate conditions for developing valuable
qualities in students.
British experts in foreign language teaching methods
J. Scrivener and J. Harmer emphasize that the active
dissemination of ICTs highlights the importance to reconsider
the role of an educator while teaching a foreign language for
both general and special purposes. (8,9)
Besides, J. Harmer notes that the teacher changes gradually the
traditional role of a knowledge transmitter into other equally
important roles such as facilitator, controller, prompter and
editor, resource and tutor, organizer, task setter, monitor, and
evidence gatherer, feedback provider, etc. Active use of those
roles promotes communication between students within the
communicative approach to foreign language teaching, helps
them to update their heuristic potential, and reduces teacher
talking time. (9)
- 228 -