On Modern Means in English Learning

Abstract：Communication makes people become closer to each other. In the modern world， English has been regarded as the most popular language used among those languages by people all over the world. How does the modern technology offer choice in the particular case of distance learning for people around the world？ How can we make good use of such modern means of education as computers， multimedia， Internet for English learning The paper will try to answer the questions based on analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of modern means used in English learning.

Key words：English；modern means； teaching methods

As time goes by， more and more numerous technological options are available for foreign language teaching and learning， especially for English learning nowadays. How did those technologies come into being？ The following is a brief history of technology and language learning， and a survey of the technological resources available to English learners. Actually technology and language learning have been a long history.

一、A Brief History of Technology and Language Learning

Virtually every type of language teaching has had its own technologies to support it. One of the traditional ways for language teachers who followed the grammar-translation method in which the teacher explained grammatical rules and students performed translations relied on one of the most ubiquitous technologies， the blackboard， a perfect vehicle for the one-way transmission of information that method implied. The blackboard was later supplemented by the overhead projector， another excellent medium for the teacher-dominated classroom， as well as by early computer software programs.

Then， the traditional language laboratory， whose basic premise was that if verbal behavior was modeled， and then reinforced， students would quickly learn the language in question. While the language laboratory was a positive step in linking technology and language education， it was soon recognized that such activities were both tedious and boring for learners.

Furthermore， the amount of student-teacher interaction was minimal， and individualized instruction was irrelevant. Besides the pedagogical deficiencies， the audio equipment was cumbersome and prone to breakdown， and had only one function-to disseminate auditory input. These factors put together led to a shift to the communicative approach to English leaning， namely， computer assisted language learning （CALL）， as well as long-distance education based on Internet. They have become more and more widely used among the English learners.

二、The typical modern means of education

1. Computer-assisted language learning （CALL）.Computer-assisted language learning （CALL） is an approach to language teaching and learning in which computer technology is used as an aid to the presentation， reinforcement and assessment of material to be learned， usually including a substantial interactive element.

CALL's origins can be traced back to the 1960s. Up until the late 1970s CALL projects were confined mainly to universities， where computer programs were developed on large mainframe computers. The PLATO project， initiated at the University of Illinois in 1960， is an important landmark in the early development of CALL. In the late 1970s， the arrival of the personal computer （PC） brought computing within the range of a wider audience， resulting in a boom in the development of CALL programs and a flurry of publications.

2.Long-distance education basedon Internet.Over the past few years， the Internet has emerged as a prominent

new technology. The influence of such a powerful technological tool has pervaded all aspects of the educational， business， and economic sectors of our world. Regardless of whether one uses the Internet or not， one must be clear about the fact that the web has entered a new information age and the Internet is here to stay.

There is no doubt that it carries great potential for educational use because of the use of the Internet， especially for the second and the foreign language education. The Internet is the latest in a series of technological innovations for second language education. The Internet's educational potential is immense. While the computer is now used in some form or another in most language classrooms， and is considered as standard equipment， the Internet is also gradually being introduced in the second language classroom as teachers become more familiar with it. So it can make a difference in English learning too.

The Internet offers a world of information available to students at the touch of a button. While it must be recognized that the Internet cannot replace the language classroom or the interaction between the language teacher and student， if offers a vast amount of information and lends it to communication possibilities that can greatly enhance the language learning experience.

Computer-mediated communication between long-distance partners allows students the opportunity for English practice in situations where such practice might otherwise be difficult. The most distinctive feature of modern long-distance education is that teachers and students can finish the teaching and learning process respectively in different places. It has no space limited， to some extent. Students are able to arrange their time and places freely. This is especially important in foreign language instruction where students might have few other opportunities for authentic target language use.

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