Abstract:

Nowadays mobile devices and applications are a crucial part of the studying process. The important role of the mobile technologies in the classroom and e-learning as a platform for teaching and studying is difficult to overestimate. The application of these devices into everyday teaching seems a sensible way of motivating students and use their skills in learning English as a foreign language. On the other hand online learning helps motivate students to do their homework. The hypothesis being that students will make progress quicker if mobile learning is used. The online platform used for this experiment was Rosetta Stone, offered by EBSCO Company.

The aim of the article is to describe the experiment which took place at Ural Federal University, Ekaterinburg, Russia, and to present its results paying special attention to the development of the listening skills. The participants of the three-month experiment were level A2 first-year STEM students. All of them were divided into three groups:
1. traditional teaching or control groups (N=35),
2. blended groups where in the classroom students had traditional interactive lessons and they did their homework on the Rosetta Stone platform (N=35),
3. experimental groups, with Rosetta Stone online both in the classroom and at home (N=35).

All the participants were from various University Departments (Chemistry, Biology, IT) and were taught by different teachers to ensure the validity of the results. The students were initially tested with DIALANG Test, and having completed the course, they were tested again to see the progress or the lack of thereof. The students’ motivation was not taken into account since English is a must and all of them had to learn it. While taking part in the experiment, the participants had mock-Cambridge English: Key tests every month evaluating the development of such skills as Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing. This article highlights the results of the online learning when developing the listening skills as well as the prospects and limitations of the mobile learning.

Keywords:

e-learning, listening skill, EFL.