Distance Methods Of Foreign Language Teaching In Russia: Practical And Theoretical Aspects

Abstract

The research is devoted to distance methods of foreign language teaching in the Russian Federation. The study aims to survey both theoretical and practical aspects of the problem, to demonstrate their advantages and disadvantages. Research has shown that distance methods of foreign language teaching in Russia occupy the position between full-time and correspondence training. However, they have their peculiar features, such as flexibility, asynchrony, coverage, profitability, parallelism, modularity, etc. Special attention is paid to the role of the teacher in the distance teaching process. The components of the course of studies during distance foreign language teaching are studied. Requirements to be taken into consideration before creating a course of studies are highlighted in the paper. The evolution of teaching foreign languages at a distant mode in Russia is surveyed. The pros and cons of different methods are analyzed, including a communicative, direct and combined ones. Various psychological approaches lying at the basis of methods of distance foreign language teaching are highlighted. They are cognitive, behavior psychology and inductive-conscious ones. New systems of distant education that are used on the regular basis within Russian educational establishments, such as Mass Open Online Courses, Universarium, Open Education are surveyed in the paper. The opportunities of technological platforms for automation of educational process and assessment of students̕ works are discussed. The results of the study can be implemented in further development and improvement of methods of distance foreign language teaching.