Difficulties in the Development of English-Language Competence in Reading in High School Students of General Secondary Education

Iryna V. Vlasiuk

doi:10.52534/msu-pp.7(1).2021.71-78

Abstract

The relevance of the study is conditioned by the growth of intercultural communication in modern post-industrial society, resulting in the need to change opinions on the development of foreign language competence in school-age students for its effective improvement and further use in professional activities. The purpose of the study is to determine the features of the development of English language competence in reading in high school students of general secondary education and to find methods of overcoming difficulties in the process of mastering a foreign language. In the process of the study, the author used general scientific theoretical methods, including methods of analysis, synthesis, generalisation, and classification. Based on research results of Ukrainian and foreign scholars, the study characterised the basic opinions on the development of foreign language competence in reading, in particular, in high school students. The study defines the term “reading” and considers its main categories, such as types of reading, levels of comprehension of the text, general personal skills for perfect command of reading in a foreign language, etc. It was found that the main difficulties in the development of English competence in reading in high school students are general language, including spelling, and psychological, based on the lack of motivation to learn the language. Tips for English teachers are presented, focused on improving the development of English competence in reading in students, including the use of authentic materials, information technology, as well as the use of practical exercises that help improve reading aloud. The authors see the prospects for further research in the empirical substantiation of methods for overcoming the difficulties of developing English-language competence among high school students

Highlights

The variability of the modern world determines the growing demand for foreign language competence, which becomes almost the main one in the process of training a future specialist since school years
Many Ukrainian and foreign scientists focused their attention on research on the development of foreign language competence in school-age students and created their own methods of teaching English
The author in her studies focused on the development of a foreign language teaching plan according to the state educational standards based on a competency-based approach [5]

Summary

Introduction

The variability of the modern world determines the growing demand for foreign language competence, which becomes almost the main one in the process of training a future specialist since school years. In practice, the situation is somewhat different: students do not have either reading or communication competences since they do not have any motivation to learn a foreign language, English in particular. The question arises what causes such difficulties in the process of forming English-language competence in high school students and how to facilitate learning English through reading. Many Ukrainian and foreign scientists focused their attention on research on the development of foreign language competence in school-age students and created their own methods of teaching English. The author in her studies focused on the development of a foreign language teaching plan according to the state educational standards based on a competency-based approach [5]. Zenya formed the main tasks of learning English in a high profession-oriented school considering the aspect of teacher's professional training [6]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion