Nauka języka obcego na odległość. Potencjał a skuteczność

Abstract

The subject of the article is a reflection on the supportive role of e-learning in language teaching. In the first section, the author presents a theoretical analysis of the possibilities offered by the distance learning method in foreign language teaching. That is followed by the description of empirical research aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of teaching foreign languages online and the possibilities such mode of instruction may offer. A pedagogical experiment carried out by the author delivered the qualitative and quantitative data, which allowed for comparing the results achieved by the students both whiles taught onsite and online. The aim of the experiment was to verify whether distance learning influences the way students develop their language skills, particularly their writing skills. The quantitative analysis was supplemented by the conclusions derived from the survey on chosen aspects of distance learning such as virtual communication, the role of a teacher and a student, skills obtained, strategies applied, as well as general strengths and weaknesses of such form of teaching. In a pilot study, the observed efficiency of on-campus and online methods was comparable. In turn, the main study showed slightly higher and statistically significant achievements in distance learning, but only among a specific group of learners. The research was also a source of some interesting observations regarding online education, especially the individualization of foreign language teaching and learning.