Abstract:

In the 20th century, new technologies provided the means for a revolution in language teaching. The ability to reproduce audio recordings inexpensively made languages accessible to students in a way which before that point had been almost impossible. At the beginning of the 21st century, the Internet and DVD's have once again brought foreign languages into the classroom at an entirely new level. But new technologies, no matter how exciting and potentially stimulating they may be, do not guarantee good teaching or proper learning in the classroom. While some students may take the initiative to use these tools, most will not be able to use them in a way which is really effective. Therefore, the language teacher must be conversant with new technologies to be able to employ them in a learning environment. But technology must also be accompanied by a proper methodology and systematic planning towards specific academic goals. The following paper presents some practical suggestions for the effective use of new technologies in the ESL classroom for teaching listening skills at various levels as well as specific examples of activities using new technologies.

Keywords:

listening skills, technology, language education.