Criteria and levels of development of the reflexive competence in a foreign language teacher

Abstract

Relevance. The relevance of the study is conditioned by the fact that pedagogical education faces huge problems, since modern changes impose higher requirements on future foreign language teachers, where special attention is paid to the development of reflexive competence in the context of a continuous learning system. Reflexive competence is an important driving force of pedagogical activity, through which internal experience is reflected upon when one's own knowledge can be sublimated and one's practical behaviour tends to be deliberate. Purpose. The purpose of the study is to reveal the problems of university preparation of future teachers of a foreign language for reflexion and to consider the main aspects of the development of a future teacher's reflexive competence. Methodology. To achieve research goals, the following methods were used: structural and functional, theoretical, and experimental. Results. The results of the study have determined that the training of a future foreign language teacher with reflexive competence today is one of the most important and significant tasks of pedagogical universities and the education system in general. The analysis showed that future foreign language teachers are not sufficiently prepared to work with reflection methods, and universities have serious shortcomings in understanding the essence of this concept. The development and improvement of the ability of future foreign language teachers to recognise problems and reflect on them play an important role in changing educational concepts, which contributes to their growth and development. Conclusions. The practical significance lies in the analysis of the current state of teaching, the formulation of criteria and levels of development of reflexive competence in a future foreign language teacher, and the formulation of criteria and appropriate levels of development of reflexive competence in the process of professional education in higher education, which determines the level of development of self-reflection.