Abstract:

The aim of this paper is to share a practical evaluation activity carried out, outside the classroom, in the classes of Foreign Language (FL), in Higher Education, in Tourism degrees, during the academic years 2018-2019 and 2019-2020, using the different functions that the tool WhatsApp offers to the user, as well as to present the students' opinions regarding the accomplishment of this activity, in linguistic and motivational terms.

The mobile device, mostly the Smartphone was our working tool. The content which can be adapted to all levels of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages is aimed at foreign language teachers and students and aims to make learning fun, motivating and dynamic, stimulating interaction between participants. The use of Whatsapp has proved to be useful in developing and improving written comprehension and production outside the classroom, allowing interaction between the teacher(s) and the student(s), with the work tool "always at hand" or "at the distance of a pocket and / or bag / backpack".

WhatsApp is a smartphone application that enables you to send written messages, audio messages, images and videos. This application allows the teacher to explore and develop all language skills, namely written expression, oral expression and comprehension skills of writing and oral skills. Our proposal for a practical activity developed by the final students in Tourism in the scope of the curricular unit - Spanish for Tourism VI - allowed us to work directly with each of the students, sending to everyone the same exercise/ proposal which can be received individually and privately or in a group and public for the group created. We want to highlight the great usefulness of the topics and exercises addressed to reinforce the skills of comprehension and written production with WhatsApp, as well as the power that this tool has and can keep having in the teaching/learning process, as long as well organized, structured and adapted to the target audience.

Keywords:

Foreign Languages (FL), Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), Whatsapp, learning, mobile devices- smartphone.