SOCIO-CULTURAL COMPETENCE DEVELOPMENT BASED ON THE USE OF VIRTUAL REALITY TOOLS FOR STUDENTS IN THE FIELD OF TRAINING ‘PEDAGOGICAL EDUCATION (WITH TWO TRAINING PROFILES)’

Abstract

Purpose. The article is devoted to the ways to develop the university students’ socio-cultural competences. The article deals with the students in the direction of training 44.03.05 Pedagogical education (with two training profiles), profiles “The first foreign language and the Second foreign language”. The purpose of the article is to describe the peculiarities of using virtual reality tools for the socio-cultural competence development of the Pedagogical University 3rd year students. The objectives of the study include the selection of virtual reality tools for the formation of socio-cultural competence, the description of the features of their application and the results of experimental work in English language classes.
 Methodology. The basis of the research is the methods of analysis, synthesis and generalization, experiential training.
 Results. The novelty of the article lies in the fact that the possibilities of individual virtual reality tools for the development of socio-cultural competence of students are considered for the first time. The practical result of the study is the creation of methodological recommendations for a foreign language teacher of a higher school on the use of virtual reality tools in the practice of teaching English at a university.
 Practical implications. The results of the study can be of use for the university English language teachers when getting ready for the classes on “Area and Cultural Studies”, “History of the English language”, “Practical course in the English language”.