The Role of Songs

in Learning a Foreign Language

Lilia Dunyasheva

I
t is not a secret that motivation is a key to successful learning.
Therefore, one of the major tasks in teaching a foreign language is to
make language acquisition more felicitous by arousing students in-
terest in the culture that is to give certain clues that would help students
recognize the peculiarities of the culture they study and absorb.
Learning a foreign language is a process paralleled to penetrating in-
to the cultural environment, and the level of language Learning is largely
determined by understanding the culture whose language serves as a me-
dium of communication.
Nowadays, on the background of the general move of the scientific
paradigm from structural to anthropological, the change in the pattern of
humanities has affected education, as well. The renewed interest in
people, their culture and forms of its expression, on the one hand, and the
expansion of international contacts under the auspices of globalization,
on the other hand, have called forth the urge and the necessity to get
more information about various forms of cultural diversity and the me-
chanisms for making intercultural communication more effective.
The dialogue of cultures starts with recognizing some common phe-
nomena in languages. That is why in teaching a foreign language it is
very important from the very beginning to make the students feel that
they are part of the culture whose language they study by exposing them
to the diverse body of cultural expressions. Certainly, manifestations of
culture are manifold, but such forms as folklore, music, songs, rhymes,
and poetry are accessible even in the classroom, and their benefit lies in

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the possibility of providing a glimpse into the essence of the culture un-
der consideration.
Music, especially a song, has always been a powerful medium of
cultural enlightenment, and it continues gaining popularity in the modern
world. Songs and song discourse contain culturally specific concepts that
constitute the backbone of the perception of the world. Thus, studying
and analyzing songs can help students understand the basic concepts of
culture. Implementation of songs in the process of learning provides ex-
cellent opportunities for the instructor not only to make each class more
productive and more appealing to the students, but also to carry out edu-
cational goals.
Today the selection of teaching material is not based on a pure lin-
guistic approach. It is becoming more culture-oriented, more communic-
ative and more personalized, which enables the teacher to incorporate
culturally valuable authentic foreign materials like songs and music into
lesson plans.
Even a decade ago the methods of song teaching were limited to lis-
tening, reading, translating, memorizing and reproducing the words. Re-
cently, however, educators are using new techniques to teach rhymes and
lyrics. The essence of the modern approach is to apply songs and other
forms of culture as a means of teaching how to express ones own
thoughts and feelings based on personal experience.
When used in a classroom, a song functions in many ways that cor-
respond to each aspect of language learning.

Perfects pronunciation skills. Songs contribute to the

improvement of word pronunciation in a foreign lan-
guage and develop a musical ear. Besides, learning and
performing short songs with simple melodic patterns
and frequent repetition helps secure the correct articu-
lation of sounds, work through the rules of phrase ac-
centuation, the peculiarities of rhythm and intonation
etc.

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Enriches students vocabulary. As a means of verbal
communication, a song can broaden ones vocabulary
because it contains many new words and word combi-
nations. In songs, words already known to the student
appear in a new contextual arrangement that stimulates
their reaction in the learners mind. Very often songs
abound in proper and geographical names, cultural re-
galia, poetic words, which favor the development of
the feeling for the language and throw light on its sty-
listic peculiarities.
Points out grammatical phenomena. Given that songs
show how certain linguistic structures function in real
speech, analyzing their structure can be a productive
way of understanding grammar constructions. Analyz-
ing songs can also function as a prelude to introducing
some grammatical rules as well as a method of their
drilling.
Develops reading and listening skills. Reading song
lyrics aloud in a group or individually stimulates fluent
reading and arouses interest in language learning.
Favors oral expression. Songs and other musical com-
positions stimulate monological and dialogical speech,
serve as the basis for the development of students ver-
bal activity, and contribute to the development of both
prepared and unprepared (spontaneous) speech.
Creates benevolent environment in the classroom. Lis-
tening to songs and singing gives pleasure to everyone
and implants an element of originality to the lesson,
which has a benign effect on the emotional sphere of
the learners. Songs further the aesthetic education of
students, their group unity, and full development of
their creative potential. Moreover, music fosters a posi-
tive psychological climate in a class, eliminates unne-

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 cessary stress, improves emotional tone, and activates
speech expression; it also increases memorization and
interest in language learning.

Like any other instructional material, songs need to be meticulously

selected, especially at the beginners and elementary levels, so as to
make their usage effective for the purpose of language learning. They
have to meet certain criteria, like the ones suggested below, which, how-
ever, are not terminal:

criterion of topicality;
criterion of linguistic value;
criterion of cultural value;
criterion of students interest as consistent with their age
group
criterion of the informativity of lyrics.

There are many ways in which songs can become part of the class-
room activities. As a specific means of language learning, a song
presents a singular approach to understanding the language. In order to
implement practical aims of teaching, first of all, techniques for teaching
songs should be communicatively oriented. Listening should be preceded
by a pre-task. For instance, students can be expected to discuss the song
after being given the songs title. While they listen to the song, students
can also do exercises prepared by the instructor. The possible exercises
may include filling gaps, correcting mistakes, putting the song verses in
the right order, and reading jigsaws. After checking the exercises, the
students can express their opinion about the song, make some commenta-
ries about its content and performance; during a second listening they
can sing together following the melody. Then, the song can be used to
perfect pronunciation, reading, vocabulary, grammar, translation, and
stylistic skills. During the analysis of the song the instructor can draw the
students attention to different grammar patterns or vocabulary previous-

Valley Voices / 84
ly studied, prepare a chain of questions, situations, riddles and cross-
words based on the content of the song. On a more advanced level mod-
ern, popular songs can serve as a stimulus to discussions about the ex-
pectations of life, personal beliefs, and peculiarities of national culture.
Political songs can evoke conversations about international situations and
social problems; lyrical songs may become a pretext to discussing the re-
lations between people. Sometimes, a teacher can ask students to com-
pose lyrics on a given melody, creating opportunities for the learners
creative development.
Thus, authentic songs form a significant national and cultural com-
ponent of the content for teaching a foreign language. The expressive
power of songs and music is evident; their educational value is undoub-
tedly a great stimulus for learning a foreign language and getting in-
volved in the dialogue of cultures.

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