Digital Learning Tools to Create New Learning Environments

Abstract

In the 21st-century digital era, it is critical to create digital-based learning environments and provide opportunities for students to meet the needs of modern education. It is important that teachers expand their digital teaching practices and enhance students’ learning processes based on digital tools. Digital learning tools can be of different types and purposes. Some digital tools serve to create interactive content, some are learning management and communication platforms, some have assessment-instrument developing functions and so on. Some of the benefits of digital learning are flexibility for students in terms of full-time material accessibility, personalized and self-paced learning, autonomous and self-directed learning, collaborative learning opportunities, engaging lessons and new learning experiences, digital literacy development opportunities, easier track to progress, etc. Digital learning tools were integrated into teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) at Sokhumi State University (Tbilisi, Georgia) during the academic year 2022-2023 as a part of the EU Erasmus+ project DITECH (Developing and Implementing Technology-Enhanced Teaching and Learning at Georgian HEIs). The survey conducted with 20 first-year EFL learners at the end of the academic year showed that students had absolutely positive attitudes toward the incorporation of digital tools in their learning practice. According to the students, the benefits that the use of digital learning tools brought to them was increased learning motivation, active learning, frequent interaction and feedback from the teacher, increased teamwork and collaboration skills, boosted creativity skills, a more effective learning process, and their learning progress. Despite the fact that digital learning tools used during the course were unfamiliar to the whole group, the students did not perceive that using digital tools made their learning process complicated. The students considered integrating digital learning tools in all teaching courses to be essential. They expressed a willingness to continue using the learned digital tools in the future in other courses as well. Hence, it can be inferred that by integrating digital learning tools into teaching, teachers can contribute to the creation of a new, transformative learning environment.