Teaching listening comprehension using video as a factor in increasing students' motivation to learn a foreign language

The article is devoted to one of the most complex types of speech activity – listening comprehension. The concept of listening comprehension as a receptive type of speech activity existing in the methodology of teaching a foreign language is considered. The subject of research in this article is the use of video materials at a foreign language class. The expediency of using video materials at foreign language classes as a means of intensifying the learning process and giving it the maximum communicative orientation is underlined. Video listening comprehension is a lighter version of ordinary listening comprehension, because the video helps students to guess what is happening on the screen and understand the situation better. Watching video is more interesting for students than ordinary listening comprehension practice, since watching a video fragment increases the students’ cognitive interest. They are more likely to participate in the discussions of the fragment being watched. Due to the creation of the favorable foreign language classroom atmosphere, video listening comprehension enhances the students’ motivation to learn a foreign language. The pilot experiment conducted to reveal the students’ attitude to video listening comprehension showed their obvious preference to this type of educational activity.