The Use of Multimedia in English Teaching

Week 3 :

     
    The definition of Multimedia

         Multimedia is the use of computers to present text, graphics, video, animation, and sound in an integrated way. 

       Components of Multimedia 

1. Text: It is the primary component of multimedia. Most of the information can be presented with the help of text. We can be emphasized the text by using different fonts, colors, styles etc.
2. Graphic: A digital representation of non-text information such as drawing, photographs etc are known as graphics. The graphic medium can be used with text medium.
3. Audio: Audio is one of the important components of multimedia. It is music, speech or any other sound. It is normally combined with animation medium.
4. Video: The effective medium for presenting information is video. It presents the moving images. It displayed the sequence of slightly varied pictures at the speed of 15-30 frames per second.
5. Animation: The animation medium presents the sequence of still images of artwork at a rapid speed that looks like the image is moving. 

         The Necessity of Multimedia in English Teaching 

          

          The Necessity of Development of Modern Educational Technology 

        The development of modern educational technology promotes the development of educational methods and means  and the development of educational thinking and model. We can say that modern educational technology must lead to development of multi-media teaching. Only multimedia teaching can develop and improve the modern education technology well. 

          The Needs of Quality Education

         Multimedia is one of the ways to promote the development of quality education. Multimedia English teaching provides a good educational platform and adds vigor for quality education, enabling students to change and update their thinking from the traditional teaching, thereby enhancing the quality of all aspects. 

          The Needs of Students’ Cognitive Mental

         The multimedia teaching system can fully mobilize the students’ audio-visual and other sensory organs, and get the best of the cognitive effect. Therefore, using multimedia teaching is very necessary, especially in English teaching. 

The Multimedia Teaching 

• Advantages of Multimedia

1. Arousing the students interest : teachers should try their best to get students to become interest in one topic of knowledge point and make the students with a strong passion and enthusiasm to participate in teaching.
2. Improving student's self-learning ability. : the most important thing is teaching students how to learn and making students change from "want me to study" to " I want to learn" in thinking from passive learning to active Learning.
3. Improving students' innovative ability
   
4. Cultivating students' communication skills.
5. Increasing classroom capacity.

• Disadvantage of Multimedia

1. Performance on behalf of the lead : Teacher addict multimedia and use multimedia instead of them self. Moreover, students really pay attention to appreciating the pictures and do not pay attention to what they should really master in the classroom.
2. Lack of spatial skills : because of lack of proficient operation of multimedia, some teachers waste certain time in the operation the computer, the unskilled operation on computer would affect the instruction flow ,which in turn would de-motive students if it happened frequently in class.
3. Over-use of multimedia : if teachers act as only information given to the students that they have no chance to have content thinking, critical thinking and creative thinking of the teachers' lecture.
4. Lack of interaction between teachers and students : is no eye contact, ask and answer to each other.

• Strategies for using multimedia

1. Combining Modern Teaching Method with Traditional Teaching Methods.
2.  Viewing Multimedia as the Assistance to Teaching.
3. Building the Ideal relationship between teachers and students.
4. Strengthening Teacher Training.