Didactic foundations for modifying the home reading aspect using mobile technologies in vocational education (based on the teaching of French to students in non-language training programs)

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Abstract. The study aims to describe the didactic potential of using new mobile and internet technologies in teaching the aspect of home reading to develop lexical-grammatical and linguocultural competences among students in non-language training programs learning the first and second foreign language. The paper uses the example of the StoryGraph app. The authors examine the possibilities of applying new mobile and internet technologies for controlling student autonomous work while using the method of reading authentic or educational foreign language literature in the format of independent work. The authors compared the effectiveness of using different approaches and technologies in teaching French (the home reading aspect) involving various control methods. The traditional approach includes post-control of the material read in the format of a classic or electronic book, while the new approach means using mobile or internet applications for online control of text material assimilation with classroom post-control. Control methods chosen were the following: control exercises, oral control of text material assimilation, essays and projects on the material read, directed discussion, final control for all groups of students, quantitative control of reading technique indicators for students in the experimental group using distance technologies. The study is novel in that it is the first to develop and test a methodology for applying modern mobile and internet technologies while implementing the aspect of foreign language home reading and various forms of control of text material assimilation (traditional ones involving current and final control in classroom oral and written formats and innovative ones involving continuous quantitative control of student indicators through the collection of reading statistics from mobile and online applications) based on the analysis of work with French-language authentic and educational texts. As a result, the study has found that new mobile and internet applications can automate the process of controlling students’ assimilation of the material, as well as create a new motivational system based on interactivity and gamification in the process of mastering the aspect of home reading. It should be noted that the modification of the home reading aspect allows increasing learner autonomy while studying foreign language texts, as well as developing lexical-grammatical and linguocultural competences through independent work with such texts.