Study of methods of learning a foreign language and the possibilities of using Virtual Reality in the area

Abstract

In our time, the study of foreign languages is an important aspect of the life of a modern person. It gives people the opportunity to get acquainted with the culture and traditions of other countries, and promotes the development of thinking, imagination and memory. It is necessary for the effective interaction with each other in many spheres of life (science, politics, culture, art, etc.). Knowledge of a foreign language today is one of the conditions of professional competence. Educational institutions provide the main opportunity for the vast majority of people to learn languages, while linguistic diversity is actively encouraged within many further education establishments and workplaces. About 1.2 billion people worldwide are learning a foreign language. According to calculations by Ulrich Ammon 289 million people around the globe have learned German at some time in their lives. 15.4 million people around the world are currently learning German as a foreign language: 90% of them are school students and 10% are adults. There are dozens of ways to learn a foreign language. It could be done by studying the language at school or college, on additional courses, in online language schools, with a teacher online, or using special applications for the phone and computer. Recently, VR applications for language learning began to appear on the market. In the same time VR Gaming on PCs has continued to show growth in 2020 with game sales up 32% year-over-year. That's not even counting the launch of Half-Life: Alyx, the VR game from the Valve studio, which added an additional 39% on top of that. Demand for PC VR is strong and growing as more than 1.7 million users on Steam experienced VR games for the first time in 2020. VR users played over 104 million PC VR sessions last year, with each session averaging about 32 minutes, culminating in a 30% increase in total playtime. Nowadays, VR is used not only for games, but even more for creating applications with the help of which employees are trained in production, in therapy, and also in education. Virtual reality also provides an opportunity for practical language learning and brings knowledge to a new level. With the availability of some standalone VR headsets, more and more students will be able to immerse themselves in VR for learning. The questions remain to what extent VR should be used in language studying, what studying methods work with this technology most effectively, how to build the learning process in this environment, and how can VR be used to improve memorization of new vocabulary.