Foreign Language Competence Research Articles

Intervention Reading Comprehension Programme in French Language

One of the priorities of European language policy is to maintain linguistic diversity, cultural identity and, last but not least, to promote effective foreign language learning. French language has a long tradition in the Slovak geographical area, whether in a historical, cultural or economic context. In the educational context over the last decade, however, it has become a second foreign language, which has begun to be reflected in particular in the declining numbers of pupils studying French. Quantitative indicators in the form of statistical yearbooks show a sixty to seventy-five percent decrease in the number of pupils learning French at different levels of education. The lower numbers of lessons, normally allocated for a second foreign language, affects the quality of the knowledge and language skills that the pupil has to acquire in order to be able to communicate at the required level in French. Based on the current position of French language in the Slovak school environment and the requirements that are placed on the language level of students, our goal was to design an effective tool that would take into account the various factors affecting the acquisition of foreign language competence of students in French. The main aim of our contribution is to present to the professional public a tool in the form of an intervention program, which specifically focuses on the development of one of the key language skills included in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, namely reading comprehension in French language. The degree of difficulty of its acquisition depends on several factors. The mastery of the linguistic, sociolingual and intercultural specifics typical for French language plays an important role in this process. In a broader sense, however, it is a much more complex process, which is also conditioned by cognitive, social and personality variables. These variables can also be called predictors or factors that significantly affect the understanding of a foreign language text. The overall concept of the intervention program is based on pre-research associated with measuring the level of reading comprehension and determining the predictors affecting students' comprehension of the text. Considering the pre-research carried out to determine the achieved level of pupils in reading comprehension, the proposed intervention program can be regarded as a preventive, but also a corrective tool for the development of language competence in French language. The compilation of an intervention program in the form of ten model intervention units for the development of reading comprehension in French has a precise structure and takes into account the ontogenetic specifics of the target group (third-year students of secondary education). The ambition of the intervention program is to include various possibilities and ways of working with text in French with regard to the development of the relevant predictor, and thus contribute to improve the quality of language education of students and last but not least to be an inspiration for teachers (as well as future teachers) of French language in a new original way.

Criteria for the Selection of Speech Material for Teaching English for Specific Purposes to Public Administrators

Currently, the priority of postgraduate education is the preparation of specialists with a sufficient level of knowledge of a foreign language for the successful exchange of both scientific and technical achievements through inter-lingual channels. Foreign language competence is a prerequisite for professional development of a specialist, and knowledge of a professionally oriented foreign language as a means of intercultural communication will allow a prospective specialist to build the basis of their personal and social life with practical skills and abilities and implement them in professional activities. This allows us to highlight the importance and necessity of a foreign language competence development in the sphere of public administration. Competence development process should be based on authentic materials and account for situations of real-life professional interaction of the specialists that leads to the relevance of the study, which aims to define the criteria of selection of the speech material for teaching English for specific purposes. This aim led to the use of theoretical research methods (studying philosophical, linguistic, psychological, didactic and methodological papers to understand the problem, developing theoretical foundations and conceptual approaches to the development of program material) and empirical ones (scientific observation of teaching a professionally oriented foreign language to public administrators). The article also outlines the importance of the development of professionally-oriented foreign language competence for the public administrators, highlights the main requirements for the candidates for public service positions in the European space, and discovers educational processes in the framework of postgraduate education in Ukraine. The authors define the unit of selection of teaching material and describe the procedure of its selection as well as the conditions of the development of foreign language competence for professional purposes.

Драматизация как интерактивная технология в преподавании иностранного языка в 8-9 классах средней школы (на примере английского языка)

The paper reveals didactic potential of dramatization as a means to develop 8th-9th grade pupils’ foreign language competence. The article describes gaming technologies, identifies specific features of games-dreams and formal dramatizations, considers the problem of introducing different types of dramatization - improvisation, imitation, pantomime, etc. The authors propose theoretically justified and experimentally approbated model to introduce dramatization as an interactive technology into English language education of 8th-9th grade pupils, identify psychological and pedagogical conditions for introducing dramatization into foreign language education, and herein lies scientific originality of the study. The research findings are as follows: the authors clarify pedagogical notion “interactive game”, reveal multi-aspect potential of dramatization as a means to form learners’ foreign language competences, evaluate the results of introducing dramatization as a tool to develop 8th-9th grade pupils’ auditory-articulatory and rhythmic-prosodic skills, expressive language skills, creative thinking skills, group work skills.

Содержание обучения моряков иноязычной письменной коммуникации в компетентностной парадигме

The research objective is as follows: relying on provisions and conceptual apparatus of a competence-based approach, the author develops the content of teaching written foreign-language communication to maritime transport workers. Scientific originality of the study involves developing conceptual foundations of teaching written foreign-language communication to maritime transport workers on the basis of competence-based approach. The research findings are as follows: the author reveals the structure of maritime workers’ written foreign-language competence, which includes sociolinguistic, psychological and didactical-methodological components. Educational content is developed regarding foreign language competence requirements for maritime workers.

Развитие цифровой компетенции при обучении описанию инфографики на иностранном языке студентов в области гуманитарных и компьютерных наук

The paper proposes a model of digital competence of the humanities and computer science students. Digital skills are required to present scientific findings in a foreign language. The article justifies the necessity to form students’ digital competence which allows them to present scientific findings in the form of infographics using cross-cutting digital technologies. Scientific originality of the study involves identifying differences in the formation of foreign-language competence in the description of infographics among students of different training areas. As a result, it is shown that the humanities and computer science students manifest different levels of digital competence, which conditions the necessity to develop this competence. The research findings are as follows: the authors propose a model of student researcher digital competence, describe the stages of teaching the description of infographics (introductory, lexico-grammatical, preparatory, practical, digital). For each stage the authors develop a set of professionally oriented tasks aimed to improve students’ digital competence.

Development of foreign language competence of higher education students in the context of blended learning

The circumstances of active implementation of a blended learning format at all educational levels require increased motivation and advancement of the competences learned by students of higher education institutions.Such statement equally applies to foreign language competence, which is one of most relevant skills to the future professional activity of international relations specialists. In considering this, the Ukrainian higher education institutions conducted a study on the development of foreign language competence of higher education students in the context of blended learning. The purpose of the article is to develop and empirically establish the effectiveness of the author's model of foreign language competence development of higher education students in the context of blended learning. The study involved the development, implementation and evaluation of the effectiveness of the author's model of foreign language competence development of higher education students in the context of blended learning. The participants of the study were students of higher education institutions: HEI 1, HEI 2, HEI 3, who majored in the following specialties: international activities, international relations and some technical specialities. The participants were 1st, 3rd and 5th year students.A total of 138 students were interviewed (68 from the experimental and 70 from the control group). The study confirmed that the implementation of the method of organizing the formation of foreign language competence of higher education students, which requires an optimal combination of blended learning with modern digital tools and the professional orientation of foreign language training in the system of higher education institutions, helps advance foreign language competence of higher education students.

THE STRUCTURE OF THE PROFESSIONAL FOREIGN LANGUAGE COMPETENCY OF A FUTURE SPECIALIST

The article is devoted to the study of the content and structure components of the professional foreign language competency of a future specialist. Based on the research of pedagogical, psychological and methodological sources related to the problem and practical experience, it is established that the issue of the professional foreign language competency, its structure has not been sufficiently investigated yet. It has been noted that the process of training of a future specialist to obtain a high level of foreign language for professional activities performance is becoming an urgent requirement of the modern world. Thus, the formation of the professional foreign language competency of a future specialist in higher education institutions is one of the strategic directions of reformation of the system of education in Ukraine, which determines the relevance of the scientific research. The purpose of the article is to interpret the term and define structure components of the professional foreign language competency of a future specialist. Theoretical (analysis of scientific sources, pedagogical, psychological literature, educational and methodological manuals, comparison, generalization of pedagogical experience) methods were used to research the problem and identify difficulties associated with foreign language learning, motivation to learn a foreign language in the context of its application in future professional activities. It has been revealed that the process of formation of the professional foreign language competency of a future specialist is complex and multi-stage and involves mastering many types of competences. Authors have substantiated the content and structure components of the professional foreign language competency of a future specialist, namely: motivational, cognitive, active and reflexive, which, in turn, provide motivation and purposefulness, meaningfulness and integrity, efficiency and effectiveness of actions to achieve the goal of communicative activity.

Applying Interactive Teaching Methods in a For-eign Language Classroom

Nowadays, higher education requires not only the development of new educational standards, but also changes in the methodology of teaching foreign languages. One of the high-priority goals is to enhance teaching methods by using new tools and technologies. That is the gist of the new educational paradigm, which offers not only a different content and approaches, but also a new attitude to them. Interactive methods of teaching a foreign language make it possible to shift the educational process from passive to active learning, providing the implementation of activity-based leaning and learner-centered approaches. Goal. The goal is to consider the principles of using interactive teaching methods in the process of foreign language teaching at a higher school and to analyze the peculiarities of these methods in the context of their effective application. Methodology. When achieving the goal, the following methods of research were used: observation, descriptive and comparative methods as well as deduction, induction, analysis and synthesis. Results. We conclude from this study that the effectiveness of using interactive teaching methods at a higher school is ensured by the implementation of the following pedagogical conditions, namely the creation of a dialogic space in higher education classroom; the application of social skills training approach to in-class and out-of-class activities; monitoring students’ personal qualities and professional orientation; the formation of teachers’ psychological readiness to use interactive technologies aimed at self-development of students. Originality. The principals for effective application of interactive methods in a foreign language classroom at the university are suggested and the conditions required for developing students’ foreign language competence in the process of interactive learning are specified. Practical value. By following the proposed principals and recommendations, it is possible to increase the level of students’ engagement in the learning process, to foster their motivation for learning foreign languages, develop students’ creativity as well as improve their communication and interpersonal skills. They can also be useful for teachers who want to facilitate their professional performance.

ROLE OF THE DIGITAL EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT IN THE FORMATION OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE COMPETENCIES

The problem of the formation of professional foreign language competencies today is inextricably linked with the ability to develop in a digital educational environment, effectively use the Internet and digital educational resources. The development of digital literacy makes it possible to safely carry out communications within the digital environment in a new format. This article examines the readiness of modern students of foreign language education to study in a digital educational environment. It is shown that when students successfully master digital technologies, they develop skills to work in a digital environment and form digital competence, which is necessary in a digital society. A number of digital educational technologies that are used in the process of teaching a foreign language are presented.

Teaching Spoken Production in Global Contexts 2021

Shaping and developing communication skills in non-linguistic faculties in higher education institutions remain relevant. Thus, the theoretical and methodological guidelines for training English professionally-oriented spoken production are among significant problems. Intending to overcome some related challenges, we conducted this study to investigate the efficiency of using presentational speeches based on authentic video materials. The main aim of the research was to analyze the problem from methodological and didactic perspectives and substantiate the theoretical and methodological principles of the professional training of monolingual students through the experimental verification of the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. To achieve the objectives of this study, in the first stage, we determined the efficiency of pedagogical conditions for developing the foreign language competence of students. Then we verified the efficiency of using presentational speeches in teaching Spoken Production. At the last stage, we analyzed the effectiveness of the proposed methods of forming and developing foreign language competence (Spoken Production) by using presentational speeches. The study sample included 45 students of the Sociology and Law Faculty in the National Technical University of Ukraine “Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute”. We obtained the results that confirmed the efficiency of the presentational speech approach in teaching spoken production. Our study revealed that the presentational speech approach facilitates enhancement in the level of students’ professional competence. These findings provide a good starting point for discussion and further research.

Motivation as the Basis for the Professional Language Competence Formation for Future Intelligence Officers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The paper highlights the main motivation aspects of military highly specialized language training of future intelligence officers of Ukrainian Armed Forces. The motivation resources for forming the professional foreign language competence of military students of higher military educational establishments are determined. The effective conditions for studying professional terminology as the basis for the skills of a future expert are specified. The necessity of organizing an effective training process of studying professional terms is substantiated with the aim of creating the most effective conditions for learning professional terms for terminology, the latter being the basis of professional communication. The algorithm for introducing highly specialized terminology is outlined in order to better comprehend and reveal the essence of the concept and structure of the terms. The emphasis is laid on the technique of introducing highly specialized terminology. Thus the process of foreign language classes organization makes it possible to master professional texts in the original. The authors maintain that main methods of rendering contemporary English military vocabulary (single- and multi-component terminology, abbreviations and shortenings, set terminological units, neologisms) into Ukrainian are as follows: lexical equivalent translation, transformation translation borrowing (transcription / transliteration), descriptive translation, loan translation and others. The difficulties in rendering military vocabulary of the NATO publications are related to the pragmatic aspects of translation.

Characteristics of Foreign Language Education in Italy and Implications: From the Perspective of National Foreign Language Capacity

This article reviews foreign language education in Italy using a national language competence-oriented evaluation approach. Foreign language education is at the heart of the acquisition component of language planning, and assessing foreign language education from the perspective of the purpose of language policy, i.e. the promotion of national language competence, which refers to the sum total of the government’s ability to deal with all language-related issues of strategic interests and allows for a more direct application of language planning theory. Based on the theoretical framework of National Foreign Language Capacity and acquisition planning, this study presents a detailed analysis of the characteristics and problems of Italian foreign language education policy, taking into account its ‘rationality,’ ‘coverage,’ and ‘influence,’ which are three interrelated indicators that allow for a comprehensive and specific assessment of national foreign language competence. By revealing the inadequacies of Italy’s national language proficiency system, the author intends to provide an insight into the gap between the effectiveness of policy formulation and implementation in foreign language education in Italy and to suggest some widespread problems in foreign language education that are similar to those in China.

Methodological Support in the Formation of the Language Competency of the «Aircraft And Helicopter Structure» Profile Students

The necessity of the innovation of the language education in a technical highest school was conditioned by the present-day development of the international industrial relations and business contacts between specialists of various countries. The purpose of technical profile students’ language training nowadays is the mastering of a language competency in the sphere of professional communication. The article aims at the description of peculiarities of a methodological support in the formation of the language competency of the technical profile students. The article represents the scientific literature review on the problem of the language education efficiency raising in a highest school; grounds the necessity of creating the methodological support as a means of the successful formation of the foreign language competency; describes researching approaches. The results view the content specifications and didactical structure of a teaching guide, which provides the language competency of the 24.05.07. Aircraft and Helicopter Construction profile students during the professional education. The theoretical and practical relevance is stated in the end of the article.

The Importance of Developing Foreign Language Competences for Military Cadets

Foreign language competences for the military personnel of Lithuania and NATO are essential in sustaining National Security of the alliance especially by effectively performing their military duties that include not only specific military art but also administrative and managemental. The Military Academy of Lithuania is a unique higher educational institution that prepares specialists in administration, management, and other fields. Therefore, being a cadet of the Academy, he/she acquires all the necessary competences to obtain proficiency in these fields. However, the cadets of the Academy considerably need foreign language competences so that they could actively, successfully, and professionally conduct their duties not only locally but also participating internationally in various military organizations and missions. Thus, in many cases military’s success in multinational operations very often depends on soldiers’ ability to communicate and express themselves in English or any other foreign language. In this “global village” it is practically inconceivable to make career without the knowledge of the English or any other foreign language. Thus, the aim of the research is to analyze the role of foreign language competencies acquired at the Lithuanian Military Academy where cadets obtain qualifications and foreign language competences needed for successful career making, National and International security. Therefore, the objective of the research is how theoretically and practically resolve the issue of developing new linguistic competences in foreign languages necessary for MAL cadets through analyses of the results of the questionnaire.

ФОРМУВАННЯ ЛІНГВІСТИЧНОЇ КОМПЕТЕНЦІЇ МАЙБУТНІХ ФАХІВЦІВ ДОШКІЛЬНОЇ ОСВІТИ ПІД ЧАС ВИВЧЕННЯ АНГЛІЙСЬКОЇ МОВИ

The article is devoted to the current problem of formation of linguistic competence of future specialists in preschool education while learning English. The aim of the research is to substantiate linguistic foreign language competence, determine the features, principlesand methods of its formation; to develop and implement a set of exercises for the formation of grammatical component of future specialists in preschool education in the educational process while learning English. The formation of linguistic competence is one of the priorities of learning English, as it is impossible to learn a foreign language without knowledge of vocabulary, grammar, phonetics and spelling.  herefore, the problem of formation of linguistic foreign language competence is one of the most relevant one in higher education, in particular during the training of future specialists in preschool education. According to certain tasks, the goal and hypothesis testing a complex system of research methods was used: theoretical, empirical, statistical on the basis of personality-oriented and competence approaches. The scientific novelty of the study is the development and implementation a set of educational tasks in the educational process which have an effective influence on the level of linguistic competence of future specialists in preschool education. The article substantiates the theoretical foundations of the process of formation of linguistic competence while learning English by future specialists during reschooleducation. The components, principles and methods of formation of linguistic competence while learning English are determined. The obtained results confirmed the legality of assumptions of the research, and implementation of goals and objectives became the basis for the corresponding conclusions. The formed level of the grammatical component of future specialists in preschool education in the process of performing their educational tasks is a confirmation of the level of linguistic competence. In addition, the results of the study give rounds to note that the implementation of a set of tasks encourages students to be more active in the classroom, stimulates learning activities, helps to provide positive motivation and promotes better learning, critical thinking and skills of individual activity.

Teaching tourist guides foreign languages: finding effective methods

The study deals with the issues of foreign language training of tourist guides. It has been established that the system of training tourism specialists for excursion activities requires improvement, namely, the improvement of foreign language competence, determination of the content of training methods for specialists in this area. The purpose of the study is to develop a methodology for the formation of foreign language competence in dialogical speech of future tourist guides. The developed methodology for the formation of language competence in dialogical speech includes the stages of formation: “replication”, mastering dialogical unity, mini-dialogues and dialogues of certain functional types; exercise system; teaching methods – interactive, project method; teaching aids, criterion-effective components of language competence in dialogical speech. The results of the study showed the effectiveness of the language competence in dialogical speech formation technique in accordance with the inductive approach.

ARRANGEMENT OF FUTURE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS EXPERTS' INDIVIDUL WORK RELATED TO STUDYING ENGLISH DURING PRACTICAL CLASSES

At the present stage, individual work of international relations applicants for higher education, approaches to which require radical changes, should become the basis of higher education, an important part of the training process of future experts. Moreover, individual work is considered to be a holistic integral formation that consists of various types of individual and collective activities for applicants for higher education, which are carried out by them in the classroom. In the frame of our research, the purpose of individual work of international relation applicants for higher education is twofold: independence development as a personality trait and English knowledge acquisition along with skills formation. We have verified that it contributes to the development of initiative, creativity, discipline, independence, accuracy, sense of responsibility, ability to solve problems on their own, ability to find constructive solutions, get out of crisis situations that are so necessary for the future specialists in their training and professional activities. In the frame of organizing the research, we optimally combined a set of methods, taking care that such a combination provides a comprehensive information about the development of foreign language communicative competence of future specialists. The methods that were used had to ensure the simultaneous study of activities, communication and awareness of the applicants for higher education. In the ongoing pedagogical research the theoretical research methods were applied. During the pedagogical investigation we have come up to the idea that there are some sufficient modern teaching methods active introduction of which will increase the educational outcomes of the foreign language competence of modern applicants for higher education. So, we have witnessed that the usage of think-outside-the-box activities, such as: gapped texts, pairs of sentences, mini-dialogues, sentence transformations, word-building and sentence formation are likely to provide a set of soft skills necessary for modern applicants for higher education of international relations specialty. We have conducted the research related to possible application of modern teaching techniques, such as: collaborative learning, cooperation of the peers, task-based or activity-based, as well as self-learning. Besides, all these modern methods were supplemented with specially designed real-life activities in English suitable for different foreign language classes. We have created a logical step by step strategy of modern method application in the educational process of shaping foreign language communicative competence necessary for future experts. We believe that modern methodic gives a vast scenario which encourages learners of international relations specialty to study profoundly and study to satisfy their curiosity.

Формування soft skills на заняттях з англійської мови у студентів ветеринарної спеціальності

Abstract. The article defines the role and importance of soft skills in teaching English to veterinary students. The author emphasizes that due to the development of superprofessional skills today universities are able to train competitive specialists, in particular in the field of veterinary medicine, who have a high level of communicative foreign language competence. It is substantiated that such skills as teamwork, communication skills, critical thinking, which contribute to the development of personality and determination of its position in society, form the basis of soft skills and determine the competitiveness of higher education graduates in the modern labor market. The purpose of the research works is to determine the role of soft skills in teaching English to veterinary students. Results of research work. Soft skills are defined as "skills of the XXI century", or "interchangeable" skills (transferable skills). They are based on such skills as teamwork, communication skills, critical thinking, which contribute to the development of personality and determine its position in society (especially in terms of effective and harmonious interaction with other people) – they are becoming increasingly important in the competitiveness of higher education institution graduates in the labor market. We can distinguish four main groups of soft skills: 1. Basic communication skills, which include the ability to persuade, argue, work in a team, negotiate, conduct business correspondence, make presentations, etc. 2. Self-management, which includes the ability to manage emotions, skills in dealing with stressful situations, the ability to plan and set goals, use the time effectively, control emotions. 3. Skills of intellectual thinking, which form the ability to search and analyze information, think creatively, logically, not stereotyped, have design skills, make informed decisions. 4. Foresight management, which helps students to master such skills as goal setting, project management, motivation, control, easy access to feedback. Exactly these super-professional skills can be formed in Business English classes for veterinary students.

EMI, international visibility and competitiveness

One of the main goals of Spanish higher education is the consolidation of an internationalised university system through international visibility, attractiveness, competitiveness and collaboration. As the literature reports, English plays a relevant role in internationalisation strategies, so this paper examines the relationship between internationalisation and English in institutional documents. Corpus linguistics and critical discourse analysis were used to identify language-related strategies and interpret the language beliefs underlying the promotion of English in the Spanish university context. Results showed that the main language-related strategy was English-medium instruction (EMI) because it promotes the international visibility of universities and helps local students improve their foreign language competence. Measures to support bilingual education were found regarding language training and accreditation. Furthermore, the discourses of globalisation, excellence and employability support the position of English as the international language. Therefore, the introduction of English as another working language in the universities’ linguistic repertoire is widely accepted, although institutional support and constant language training measures are considered essential for the success of internationalisation goals.

Технологии дополненной и виртуальной реальностей: инновации в обучении иностранным языкам в вузе

Modern society requires specialists who are ready to act in a high-tech professional environment. The use of Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) technologies is a key direction for the development of the professional sphere in the near future. The relevance of this study is due to the need to introduce these technologies in the field of foreign language education in universities to optimize the process of forming students' professional foreign language competence. The purpose of this article is to study and analyze the existing experience of using educational technologies of augmented and virtual reality in teaching a foreign language in Russia and abroad. Methodology and methods: the lack of a sufficient research base devoted directly to the experience of implementing AR and VR technologies in the process of teaching a foreign language to university students led to the choice of a comprehensive research methodology: theoretical analysis of scientific, pedagogical and methodological literature on the research topic, description and analysis of research results. As a result, the article analyzes the use of augmented and virtual reality technologies in teaching a foreign language, their purpose and functions. The possibility of using these technologies in the educational environment in order to visualize the educational material, supplement it with visual information technologies by reading the QR code with smartphones, tablets and other gadgets, increase motivation and interest in learning is shown. The advantages and disadvantages of augmented and virtual reality technologies are highlighted. It is concluded that educational AR and VR technologies have a huge potential for teaching a foreign language in universities, and many of their shortcomings will be eliminated in the coming years.