THE IMPACT OF ONLINE VIDEO GAMES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE (AS ESL) IN SCHOOLCHILDREN

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of the influence of online video games on the process of formation and development of communicative competence in the English language (ESL) among middle and senior schoolchildren. The relevance of the topic is due to deep transformations of the educational environment and the need to find innovative teaching methods that meet the interests of the modern generation. The work analyses the genesis of the concept of «communicative competence», and emphasises its multifacetedness, which covers linguistic, sociolinguistic, strategic and discursive aspects. Special attention is paid to the gamification mechanisms within the New Ukrainian School (NUSH), which allow creating a safe and exciting environment for language practice. The work considers massively multiplayer online roleplaying games (MMORPG) as a unique «microcosm», where the English language is not an object of study, but a practical tool for achieving game goals, coordinating team actions and social interaction. The article proposes and substantiates a hypothesis about the neurobiological and behavioural basis of learning in games, where the reward system stimulates selective attention to language stimuli. The practical part of the study is based on the results of a survey of 72 respondents aged 12–16. Statistics confirm the high level of involvement of teenagers in the English-speaking gaming environment: 85.9% of respondents are active gamers, and more than two-thirds have direct contact with native speakers on servers in the USA, Great Britain and Canada. The process of integration of gaming slang (anglicisms) into the everyday and school discourse of teenagers is analysed in detail. Terms such as «level», «skill», «admin», and «pharm» have been found to become metaphorical means for describing the learning process. At the same time, the risks associated with phonetic and morphological deformation of words, which can lead to the consolidation of language errors, are highlighted. The necessary role of the teacher in methodical support for the transformation of spontaneous game experience into academic knowledge is determined.