Academic Literacy Development among Master’s Degree Students in the Process of Studying a Foreign Language in Professional Communication

Abstract

The knowledge-based model of education, in which the formation of the students’ skills to critically think, evaluate, analyze information and use it in their own research comes to the fore. However, it is necessary to note that the level of academic literacy is low, because students lack the academic writing skills needed to become successful professionals after graduation. This problem is caused by the lack of students’ motivation to write academic texts and present the result of their research work in front of the audience, the insufficient number of modern methods and approaches to teaching academic writing, the lack of special courses aimed at foreign language writing competence developing, as well as the absence of strategies for the formation of academic literacy which is the key competence for creating new knowledge. The article presents an analysis of the phenomenon of “academic literacy,” its structural components, on the basis of which the author suggests the indicators of its formation among undergraduates. Since academic literacy depends on the ability to communicate in academic discourse, the author of the article describes the experience of organizing the process of teaching written forms of professional and scientific communication to master’s degree students in law within the framework of the discipline “Foreign Language in Professional Communication.” Consistent writing skills training makes it possible to realize the requirements for academic literacy, namely: the ability to critically think, analyze information, accept and respect someone else’s point of view, create new knowledge, express ideas in a well-structured and accessible form, work independently, as well as evaluate the results of work. The process of mastering academic writing skills facilitates academic literacy of students, which opens up opportunities for effective communication in the academic community, as well as the successful integration of future specialists into scientific professional communities.