NEW MEDIA IN ENCOURAGING READING SKILLS AND STUDENTS' HABITS IN CLASSROOM TEACHING

Abstract

The teaching of mother language and literature in primary schools is generally conducted in a traditional way. In traditional teaching, the method of presentation prevails, the most commonly used teaching method in the teaching process. Here the teacher is the transmitter of knowledge, he or she transmits ready-made scientific truths to the students, and the student remembers and reproduces them. It is clear that this type of teaching cannot satisfy the needs of modern society, ie. in this way, student skills, freedom of thought, and creative thinking and preparation for lifelong learning cannot be developed. On the other hand, the modern age in which we are witnessing rapid technological progress and modernization has greatly contributed to teachers attempts in various ways to modernize and innovate, and thus raise the quality of teaching to a higher level. The student is no longer just a passive observer, but an active participant in the process of teaching, who participates in the preparation, realization and evaluation of teaching situations. The curriculum for primary school prescribes literary works that students should read in a certain period of time and thus develop reading competencies. Reading is considered very important for the forming of ones personality and general literacy, because students expand their vocabulary, awaken imagination and creativity, develop the skill of expression, learn about different cultures, languages ​​and customs and more fully experience themselves and the world around them. Reading material should actually be a means of encouraging reading and developing reading habits and love for reading. However, it usually isn't. Students are less and less interested in reading, and are increasingly resorting to retold reading reports on the Internet. They spend most of their free time with computers, smartphones, games and social networks, so it is not surprising that new media are considered as the biggest enemy of books and reading. On the other hand, new media are precisely those that can serve as an excellent stimulus for students to read, and at the same time provide teachers with the opportunity to improve the quality of the teaching process and thus provide two-way communication with students. Some of the obstacles that arise when it comes to the use of new technologies in teaching are certainly: non-functional space, poorly equipped classrooms, insufficient education of teaching staff, etc. While today's students handle computers, tablets and smartphones with ease from an early age, teachers find it somewhat more difficult to cope with the challenges of the modern age. In order to keep up with the times and challenges that the new age brings almost every day, it is necessary to follow technological innovations, to further improve and constantly work on developing their digital competencies. The aim of this paper is to point out the possibility of applying new media in reading classes in the processing of literary works and the positive aspects of their application in encouraging reading skills and students' practices in the classroom.