On behalf of Russian-speaking community in the US
On behalf of the Russian-speaking community in the US and Newspaper 'Russkaya Reklama', we would like to tell you about Education in the US and Use of Technology in Teaching and Learning. How a Russian finds a Key to Successful Learning and Teaching.
Towards the American Dream through Virtual Reality
10/15/2020
How a Russian Teaches Americans Their Language
For 10% of American students in public schools, English is not their mother tongue. And that's fine. The continuous flow of immigrants to the United States is likely to only increase this figure.
It is believed that an immigrant does not seek to speak for a long time in a new language environment. This is due to the fear of not understanding the interlocutor or incorrectly expressing your thought. That is why foreigners prefer to remain silent. It often happens that an immigrant does not begin to speak English for many years.
That is why ESL teachers (teachers of English as a second language) are in great demand in the US. What makes them different from rank-and-file English teachers? They don't just explain grammar and punctuation. They teach to speak and think in English; they help to understand the culture of the new homeland.
A few years ago, a Russian woman, Yana Berezhnaya, decided to become such a guide to the American culture. A graduate of the City University of New York and four other universities and colleges in the States and abroad, she observed the socialization of Russian-speaking immigrants in a new environment while being a student. She paid attention to how the newcomers adapted to the unfamiliar language. Thus, she concluded: bilingual education helps to adjust and start speaking English quickly.
At first, Yana taught Russian and English at traditional language courses. Over time, she developed her own methodology and desire to introduce new technologies into the educational process. A few years later, Berezhnaya opened her own English courses in New York. The main goal was to teach the language for communication without barriers. In 2017 Yana Berezhnaya started working at Lingva Pro where developed an online educational platform where residents from all Big Apple districts, from Manhattan to the Bronx, learned English. Of course, there were our compatriots, Russian-speaking residents of the United States, among the students.
Let's talk numbers: more than 600,000 Russian Americans reside in New York alone. If you add here people from Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and other former Soviet Union countries, you get over a million. Imagine how much benefit a Russian woman has brought to American society by helping new Americans adapt to their new environment faster, applying her innovative teaching methods. Thanks to her, foreigners prepare for essential interviews or passing the US civic tests and learn English for work.
Berezhnaya's method of teaching English began to spread outside the United States. The students liked getting significant results, which meant that in a short time, they were starting to speak English as if they grew up in an English-speaking environment. Today, the platform is used to prepare for TOEFL, IELTS, SAT, GMAT, GRE; they teach business and medical English, help prepare for interviews, pass the civic test, and write essays. Bilingual programs are taught in Spanish, German, French, and Russian.
Even before the pandemic and widespread distance learning, Yana Berezhnaya caught the trend and made a bet on virtual reality. The new project is still at the stage of a business plan, but it has a promising future. What is the essence of the new approach to learning English? Thanks to the VR EduGlasses, the platform users access virtual libraries and archives anywhere in the world. Teachers and 24/7 technical support allow you to study when it is convenient for you. Considering that 80% of the platform students are working people, the solution is straight to the point.
The essence of the innovation
Virtual reality glasses are synchronized with the educational platform. The student creates a profile and installs the course. From this point on, the user gains access to lessons, resources, and consulting services non-stop. They set up a study timetable that is convenient for them. At the same time, students are not alone; teachers will always help them in virtual reality.
The students can track, save, and share their progress with other platform users. Virtual classrooms will help overcome language and cultural barriers since they can get to any English-speaking country through a virtual guide. Communication with native speakers will help you to overcome the language barrier quickly.
The new technology is based on gamification, or playful learning. The computer games experience will serve educational purposes.
For example, the course content will be filled with historical events, which will also increase students' cultural awareness. They will be able to travel across English-speaking countries in time. For example, to visit the United States of the Kennedy era.
The customized approach in a new format
The virtual reality in education does exist to some extent already, however, customized services are our future, yet to be discovered. Naturally, adaptation to individual requirements will also influence the education sector. With this approach, artificial intelligence will relieve teachers from a certain routine: it will process large amounts of information and evaluate the student's training level. It is expected that based on this data, the robot will develop an individual training program. The teacher will need to make adjustments.
At each stage, the program will continue to evaluate the student's progress and suggest additional changes to optimize the learning process and achieve even better results.
Yana, as a dedicated researcher, appreciated all the pros and cons of new technology. She suggests dosing virtual reality depending on the age of the student. Because new technologies provoke addiction, younger students should spend more time with a real teacher than a virtual one.
American Dream with a Russian accent
Yana Berezhnaya's innovative techniques aroused interest among Americans themselves. They are eager to finance and develop the project of bilingual language teaching with immersion in virtual reality. What should be done first? Attract human capital. Thus, the team of 45 teachers will be joined by software engineers and professional linguists. Gaming pros will come in handy here.
Yana Berezhnaya's innovative and unique teaching methodology helps immigrants and international students master the country's language and culture. Yana's project is potentially useful to the several million immigrants already living in the US and those millions who are planning to move to the United States in the future.
The USA remains a country of immigrants. In recent years, the flow of migrants from the CIS countries has been increasing. Thousands of people apply for Green Card or would prepare for a citizenship test every year. This means that the demand for ESL training will only grow. And new technologies will make it more attractive.
Obviously, such global technology cannot be limited to one country. The innovative platform will surely bring together students from all over the world. Berezhnaya expects the number of students to increase by more than half in the first two years, according to the most conservative forecasts.
Prepared by Mikhail Tripolsky
