| ICT and English Education in the Global Age |
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Dong Hyun Ahn |
| 글로벌 시대 정보 통신 테크놀로지를 통한 영어 교육 방향 모색 |
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안동현 |
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| Abstract |
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English is the dominant global language of the Internet. In this paper, I discuss how to make the most of the ICT(Information and Communication Technology) for English education, and what the contents of English education should be like in the globalized context.
The Internet helps EFL students to learn the authentic English which is not available in their everyday lives. The Internet also makes possible the self-paced learning and life-long learning with minimal restrictions of time and place. Students can study English at any time at any place at their own pace. These benefits of the Internet are especially advantageous for Koreans, who don’t use English as their everyday language. It also makes the self-study of English easier, which helps to reduce the cost of private education that many Koreans heavily depend on for their English education. The Internet is useful for classroom English as well. As the facilitator of the class, the teacher can build a class with a lot of useful resources from the Internet. The teacher can also refer to many lesson plans that English teachers around the world post to share with other teachers. ICT also encourages the communication between the teacher and the students as well as among classmates.
With speed and interactive-ness that the Internet provides, it is now easier to learn about other cultures and to exchange cultures. Teachers cannot teach culture itself in the traditional sense, but help students to ask right questions about cultures and find answers for the questions. Also, it is possible for students to participate in the global issues such as the environment, starvation, wars, the global economic crisis, etc. They can research, debate, do team projects, and express their opinions about the issues through Internet pages and SNS. Having interests in global issues and expressing their ideas is what truly makes them global citizens. |
| Key Words:
ICT(Information and Communication Technology), English education, self-paced learning, teacher as a facilitator, cultural education, global issues |
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