THEMATIC WEBQUEST AND ITS IMPACT ON FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING OF STUDENTS

Abstract

The focus of this article is to show how thematic WebQuests tackle major challenges facing students who study English as a foreign language at the Moscow Institute of International Relations. “A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all the information that learners interact with comes from recourses on the Internet, optionally supplemented with videoconferencing”. (Dodge, 1997). WebQuests are part of project-based learning; they also integrate the Program and Problem Methods and are aimed at achieving a practical result. When working on Thematic Short-term WebQuests (encompassing a 2-3 week period), the following key factors were taken into account: the topical and linguistic areas of the Masters Course of English, learners’professional areas of expertise as well as the Upper Intermediate and Advanced Level of English of students. One of the major advantages of WebQuest technology is that it is based on the idea of Discovery Learning, which implies that learners remember information better if they discover it for themselves. Students “discover” information while working on a WebQuest. In fact, WebQuest technology is a flexible teaching methodology, which enables an academic to devise an authentic WebQuest technology aimed at tackling targeted tasks of a particular course/module/semester/program etc. Today students are digital natives and integrating WebQuests (based on Internet resources) into the classroom is a major motivating factor. Another aspect the article deals with is selecting Internet resources and substitution of outdated sites by the teacher. Integration of new digital educational technologies, WebQuest technology included, match comprehensive approaches to education and combat the challenges facing the digital generation. According to UN survey, informational technologies are a key factor of economic growth. University e-education enables students to gain a competitive edge on the global arena.