Language acquisition for ESP students with suggestopedia method application

Abstract

As a result of global changes in the world, the role of a foreign language in the education system has altered. From an ordinary university subject, a foreign language has turned into one of the basic elements of the modern education system, a means to achieve professional realization for the individual. These changes demand new approaches and methods of teaching. The paper is dedicated to the issues of non-traditional methods of language acquisition in non-linguistic universities, namely the suggestopedia method for ESP students of engineering specialties considering perspectives of lifelong learning. Lifelong learning is supposed an important factor in sustainable development at the global, national, and local levels. The research widens the standards to progress speaking competence. A total of 80 undergraduate students of engineering majors at the Podillia State University (Ukraine) completed the mandatory ESP course in the 2021-2022 academic year and were involved in the experiment, being divided into two groups: the first group, where the traditional approach to mastering conversational skills was applied, and the second one, which practiced a communicative approach to language learning. Based on the results of the experiment, the hypothesis regarding the effectiveness of the communicative approach to learning a foreign language as opposed to the traditional approach to learning has been justified. The conducted research proves the effectiveness of the suggestopedia method for improving speaking skills as a way of developing the linguistic competence of students and leading to obtaining lifelong learning habits.