Linguistic University Research Articles

World Regional Studies as a Research Approach and Scientific School. Interview with Alexei D. Voskressenski, Professor, MGIMO University

Professor Alexei D. Voskressenski is a leading Russian expert in Asian Studies, IR and Politics, a famous sinologist and founder of scientific school of World Regional Studies. Alexei D. Voskressenski graduated from MSU Institute of Asian and African Studies in 1982, in the following years continued his education at Singapore National University (1983), Fudan University (1986), Beijing Linguistic University (1987). He worked as a guest researcher in France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Japan and the USA, defended his PhD and senior doctorate at the RAS Institute of Far Eastern Studies (1989, 1998) and the PhD thesis at the University of Manchester (1997). As the head of the Department of Asian and African Studies at MGIMO University (1999-2007) and the dean of the MGIMO College of Political Affairs and World Politics (2008-2017), he actively participated in the creation and conceptualization of educational programs in Regional Studies, Comparative Political Science, foreign policy analyses, history and contemporary issues of the Asia-Pacific region. Professor Voskressenski is the author of more than 500 academic works, including books published by Palgrave Macmillan, Rowman & Littlefield / Lexington Books, Cambridge University Press, etc. Professor Voskressenski is a member of the editorial boards of academic peer-reviewed journals: «Problems of the Far East», «Values and Meanings», «RSUH Bulletin», «International Trends», «Transbaikal State University Journal» and our journal (Vestnik RUDN), and some international journals «俄罗斯 学 刊» (Russian Studies), «International Journal of Russian Studies». In the interview, Alexei D. Voskressenski speaks about the history of formation and advantages of the World Regional Studies as a research platform, other approaches in Social Sciences, compares approaches of the leading Russian academic schools of Regional Studies and analyzes the positive and negative aspects of the Western, Non-Western and national academic schools. The interview contains a theoretical analysis and understanding of the conceptual content of scientific knowledge in the field of international relations theory, humanities and social sciences in general.

Teaching Anti-Utopian/Dystopian Fiction in RFL/EFL Classroom as Intercultural Awareness Raising Tool

The article sets out to explore and substantiate the effectiveness of using anti-Utopian and dystopian fiction in teaching intercultural communication. It is based on the lasting experience of teaching Russian and English languages and cultures to students from many European, Asian, and African countries trained as Russian and English philologists at the Kyiv National Linguistic University. Intercultural literacy is one of the conditions sine qua non for successful communications and career in the rapidly globalizing world. Intercultural awareness in the Foreign Language Classroom can be raised by incorporating literary texts written in target languages into the curriculum. In addition to being instrumental for acquiring linguistic prowess, they can also play a substantial part in fostering (inter)cultural competences in non-native speakers. The two texts by contemporary Russian and British writers (Tatiana Tolstaya’s The Slynx and Jeannette Winterson’s The Stone Gods) were selected as case studies due to their artistry in addressing familiar and relevant human concerns, while containing specific cultural codes to be deciphered and understood by the international students. It was established that the success of the teaching/learning process relies on the interactive dialogic qualities inherent in the texts under study and enabling comparative, interdisciplinary, and cross-cultural approaches to them, thus contributing to the formation of full-fledged intercultural speakers. As demonstrated by the article, current dystopian fiction may serve as an efficient tool in enhancing intercultural competence in international students.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF ENGLISH ACADEMIC WRITING SKILLS AT HIGHER SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS UNIVERSITY (RUSSIAN CONTEXT)

Medvedeva Ekaterina has been teaching English at the Department of Language Training at Russian Presidential Academy (RANEPA University) since December 3, 2018. She teaches general English, as well as social and political aspects to students of the 2nd and 3rd year at Liberal Arts Faculty. She is also working as an English teacher at Higher School of Economics University at the Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs (since April, 2019). Ekaterina graduated from Moscow State Linguistic University, the faculty of Translation and Interpretation (2017) and from University of Leicester, the faculty of International Education with an additional module on Innovations and Reforms (2018). Ekaterina’s research activities at the University of Leicester, international conferences and seminars allowed her to gain experience in communication and scientific exchange with the leading experts in the field of International Education and ELT and conduct her independent research.

Changes in the system of students’ terminal and instrumental values under the influence of health and recreational physical activity

The article investigates the influence of health and recreational physical activity on terminal and instrumental values of higher education institutions students. The following research methods are used, including theoretical analysis of professional scientific and methodological resources by domestic and foreign authors, sociological, psychological and diagnostic, pedagogical research methods, methods of mathematical statistics. To determine the initial level of healthy lifestyle attitudes formation among students M. Rokych’s method of “Value Orientations” has been used. The research has been conducted on the basis of Kyiv National Linguistic University, National Pedagogical University named after M. P. Drahomanov. The study has involved 48 students (23 boys and 25 girls), who were part of the experimental (EG) and control (CG) groups (total of 24 people). The program of health-improving classes for students of higher education institutions has presupposed the use of various means of health-improving and recreational physical activities twice a week. The duration of classes was one and a half hours. Those that are most in demand among student youth were chosen as priorities. Among the young men these were strength exercises, elements of sport games and recreational games. Among the girls they included health fitness exercises. We have confirmed the feasibility and necessity of using innovative means of physical activity and forms of extracurricular activities in development of such programs that significantly increase the motivation of young people to participate in such programs. In the course of the research we have studied the hierarchy of terminal and instrumental values among young men and women who studied in higher educational institutions. The application of the developed program contributed to the students' awareness of “health” category value. Among EG students such instrumental values as education (depth of knowledge, high general culture), self- control (restraint, self-discipline) and rationalism (ability to think wisely and logically, to make thoughtful, rational decisions) have transferred to the first place. The obtained results prove that there are positive changes in the system of students’ terminal and instrumental values under the influence of health and recreational motor activity.

Экотранслатология в преподавании перевода на переводческих факультетах

Объект исследования — подход к переводу, названному предложившим его китайским ученым Ху Гэншенем «экотранслатологическим» («экопереводческим») и получившему в последние годы широкую известность. Ху Гэншень подчеркивает принципиальную новизну и целостность этой концепции, хотя некоторыми учеными высказывается мнение, что экотранслатология всего лишь объединила ряд уже существующих подходов и что ее постулаты страдают расплывчатостью. Автор данной статьи, не вступая в полемику, пытается показать, что основные положения экотранслатологии применимы не только к переводу как профессиональной деятельности, но и к процессу обучения переводу. Кажущаяся «расплывчатость» принципов транслатологии помогает взглянуть на обучение переводу целостно, как на создание среды, в которой будущий переводчик приобретает профессионализм в единстве его лингвистических, психологических, философских и этических составляющих. The paper examines a relatively new approach to translation suggested in 2003 by a Chinese scholar Hu Gengshen, which since then has gained worldwide attention and popularity. It offers a holistic vision of translation, integration of bilingual language competence, traditional Chinese philosophy rooted in harmonу, and the universal translation mechanisms of adaptation and selection. Ecotranslatology borders on a number of approaches, and its postulates are sometimes considered too general and vague. But the author of the paper attempts to show that a multi-dimensional vision of ecological environment can promote the teaching of translation as a unity of linguistic, psychological, philosophical and ethical components.

Внедрение профессионального перевода в практические занятия по иностранному языку на младших курсах

Задача статьи — доказать, что профессиональная подготовка будущих лингвистов-перевод-чиков начинается с самого начала обучения на первом курсе, то есть уже за два года до начала изучения теории и практики перевода. Если рассматривать лингвистическую составляющую переводческой компетенции с точки зрения вычленения значимых сем и их передачи иными лингвистическими средствами, то готовить к профессиональному переводу можно через «внутриязыковой перевод» и учебный перевод в условиях интеграции языковых и переводческих навыков, которые взаимно подкрепляют друг друга. Принятие творческих переводческих решений, не являясь задачей младших курсов, может применяться как средство более глубокого проникновения в коммуникативную интенцию автора художественного текста. На практических примерах статья призвана показать, что элементы профессиональной подготовки переводчика на младших курсах «врастают» в процесс совершенствования речевой компетенции как на иностранном, так и на родном языках. The author’s goal is to demonstrate that foreign language acquisition at translation/interpretation colleges may incorporate the development of professional skills from the very beginning, rather than wait for two years until students are offered a course in the Theory of Translation. If we regard the linguistic component of translator/interpreter professional education from the viewpoint of rendering the essential semantic features of a message in a different code, it is possible to use “intralinguistic translation”, in R. Jacobson’s idiom, — that is, to paraphrase native language utterances, since paraphrasing is one of the most universal skills, equally necessary for language proficiency and effective translation. It helps to weigh one translation decision against another, to see which semantic components are rendered and which are lost and to decide how the lost components of meaning can be reconstructed in another “translation”. Language acquisition is fostered by the so-called “pedagogical translation”, which has a purely utilitarian purpose of grammar and vocabulary skill formation. And here elements of professional translation may come in unobtrusively. Not only is it feasible to teach standard “algorithmic” translation strategies along with imparting language skills, but also individual (non-standard, “heuristic”) translator decisions. “Infiltration” of professional translation into the early stages of foreign language acquisition enhances language skills and shows students how a slight modification of the structure, wording or intonation can alter the message. Translation-focused semantic awareness makes language learning more motivated and intellectually satisfying.

STIMULATION OF STUDENTS’ COGNITIVE ACTIVITIES IN THE PROCESS OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNING


 
 
 Currently the stimulation of students’ cognitive activity in learning a foreign language is one of the most pressing problems of pedagogy. In organizing the educational process of a foreign language, the motivation of students plays a significant role. Successful student motivation helps to set priorities, activate and concentrate thinking, increase interest in learning a foreign language as a whole and perform specific tasks in particular. The article considers the most relevant and actual methods of stimulating students’ cognitive activity in the modern technical non- linguistic university, aimed at modern youth, their interests and hobbies. The most expedient methods of activating students' educational activities have been mentioned.
 
 

Professional Communicative Competence of the Future Interpreters in View of Regional Specifications

The professional activity of a modern translator is characterized by participation in various spheres of intercultural interaction. Successful translation is about acquiring background knowledge of the culture of a particular region. The topical issue of language and translation training in a linguistic university is the formation of the proper level of foreign language communicative and intercultural competence of future translators in view of the regional specifications of professional activity. The purpose of the article is to substantiate and describe the component composition and essential characteristics of the professional communicative competence of future translators, considering the regional specifics, to clarify and expand the fundamental concept of the study. The review of scientific literature considers research data on the problem of teaching foreign language communication; the formation of foreign language communicative / intercultural competence among university students, determining the structure and essential characteristics of communicative competence. The methodology sets out theoretical and empirical research strategies. The research results formulated the pragmatic goal of language and translation training; the regional specificity is characterized, the composition and essential characteristics of the professional communicative competence of the translator are determined; the fundamental concept of the study is clarified and expanded. In the conclusion, the scientific novelty and theoretical significance of the article are formulated.

TEACHING ENGLISH PHRASEOLOGICAL UNITS TO LINGUISTIC UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

The aim of the present paper is to study the English and Uzbek phraseological units and work out the system of exercises, according to their linguacultural specific features. Five types of tasks were suggested to the students of linguistic universities. Determining the correct translation in Uzbek phraseological units, proverbs and sayings of the English language, determining the correct translation from English of phraseological units into the Uzbek language, selecting a phraseological unit that corresponds to the content of the text, definition of a sentence corresponding to a phraseological unit, insert the omitted phraseological unit in the sentence.

Personal empathy and social-psychological climate as factors of learning satisfaction in linguistic university students

The article contemplates on the results of empirical research on personal empathy and social-psychological climate as factors of learning satisfaction in linguistic university students. Data acquired allowed to broaden the concept of social-psychological climate shaping in a study group. They also contributed to raising awareness of empathy skill level in students and the specific features of learning satisfaction in students of different specialties.

ПРОБЛЕМА РАЗВИТИЯ КУЛЬТУРНОЙ САМОИДЕНТИЧНОСТИ ПРИ ОВЛАДЕНИИ ИНОСТРАННЫМ ЯЗЫКОМ ВЗРОСЛЫМИ

The article deals with the problem of cultural identity in mastering a foreign language by adult students during the lifelong learning process. It reveals the meaning of the terms “self-identity”, “self-identification”, “cultural identification”. The problems of forming students’ intercultural competence, a deep view of their native culture, and awareness of their own ethno-cultural identity are discussed. The article reveals the potential of the discipline “Foreign Language” for the development of cultural identity, defines the role of linguistic education in enriching the individual picture of the world of students in the comparative context of different cultures. Recommendations on the organization of the pedagogical process in line with the current trends of the Federal Project “Education” are offered. The article highlights the stages of teaching foreign languages within the framework of the intercultural paradigm. According to the authors, cognitive-intellectual, emotional and behavioral components should be included in the educational process aimed at developing cultural self-identity. The authors consider the development of cultural self-identity of adults as a basic principle of continuous self-education. For the purpose of its practical implementation, cross-cultural trainings are used, namely, the creation of communicative situations, role-playing game, webinar, coworking and project. The development of distance education makes it possible to successfully implement webinars in the educational process, which make it possible to reach a wide audience and attract native speakers more easily. The co-working technology helps to create a creative atmosphere, quickly helps participants establish contact and establish friendships. The project activity allows one to thoroughly work out and analyze a specific task, search for conditions and methods aimed at achieving a practical result. The authors conducted experimental training in two blocks at Nizhny Novgorod Dobrolyubov State Linguistic University and OJSC “GAZ” in order to test the possibility of using various cross-cultural trainings for the formation and development of self-identity of adults when they master a foreign language. The results were evaluated by tests on the skills and abilities of cross-cultural communication, as well as a questionnaire of the audience’s evaluation of their ability to enter into intercultural interaction and develop self-identity. Thus, the authors come to the conclusion that mastering a foreign language from the point of view of the development of cultural identity of adults should be built on a contrast-comparative basis using various cross-cultural trainings that include materials of a comparative nature.

CIVIC EDUCATION IN UKRAINE: A QUALITATIVE STUDY OF STUDENTS’ EXPERIENCES OF CIVIC ENGAGEMENT (on the example of Kyiv National Linguistic University)

The formation of informed, socially responsible professionals and citizens is the prime goal of education in Ukraine. To that end, the Law on Education of Ukraine obliges the state to create conditions for civic engagement of students. While quantitative studies on the subject put a compelling argument about the benefits of civic engagement for promoting participatory democracy and enhancing students’ analytical and communication skills, there is scant knowledge of how students actually understand and experience it. The article makes an attempt to address this issue. Drawing on the qualitative methodology and a development triad motivation-activity-outcome, it studies civic engagement experiences of students of Kyiv National Linguistic University. The majority of respondents associate civic engagement with volunteering, political activity and the notion of active citizenship. Students who participated in civic-related activities in the hope of a better grade (extrinsic motivation) reported learning next to nothing from their participation. Conversely, students who took part in such activities for personal reasons (intrinsic motivation) reported improvement of their communication and teamwork skills. Participants struggled to describe the wider impact of their civic engagement due to the lack of reflection. Based on the results of the study, we propose a tertiary model for structuring civic engagement opportunities in a university setting to enhance students’ experience.

The development of the social paradigm of eco-centrism: A philosophical interpretation of the sociological research in university

The article considers the features of the youth’s attitudes to environmental issues and environmental crisis and the situation in environmental science - its features at the present stage of development, and explains the relevance of theoretical and practical studies of the environmental awareness and development of environmental culture. Two alternative interpretations of environmental issues are presented: alarmist and optimistic social stereotypes. Today, due to the qualitative and quantitative growth of information, the attitude to environmental issues is changing - it becomes more rational and balanced. However, the task of monitoring transformations of the public consciousness in relation to ecology is still relevant. The article presents the results of the sociological research conducted among students of undergraduate programs in engineering and humanities. The survey aimed at studying environmental values of the Russian youth and was conducted in 2019 in four Moscow universities: Moscow Power Engineering Institute, Moscow State Technical University named after N.E. Bauman, RUDN University, Moscow State Linguistic University. The survey results show that the traditional environmental education based on the increase of knowledge about nature does not lead to the change of environmental values and behavior in nature. The authors insist on introducing into contemporary ecology and informal ecological education the new social paradigm of eco-centrism that corresponds to the idea of harmonizing the relationship between man and nature and of a balanced, “calm” attitude of society to the environmental crisis. The authors also show the connection of psycho-ecology with environmental problems in public consciousness and the potential of this concept as a moral-ethical basis of the social paradigm of eco-centrism.

Мотивація у навчанні англійської мови студентів немовних університетів як педагогічна проблема

Мотивація у навчанні англійської мови студентів немовних університетів як педагогічна проблема

DEVELOPING THE PRAGMATIC COMPETENCE OF FOREIGN LEARNERS: GUIDELINES TO USING CONSTATIVES IN MODERN ENGLISH DISCOURSE

The article is devoted to the problems of foreign language education in linguistic universities, namely to acquiring the pragmatic competence by students. The research questions whether EFL learners are pragmatically competent in using language in a certain communicative situation. The experimental teaching session proves that the special research methods (descriptive, pragmatic, performative analyses) and divergent forms of learning the modal perspective of constatives in discourse can provide students with the appropriate knowledge base. The main conclusions drawn from this research are that EFL learners can have only elementary pragmatic competence without a special training session. Therefore the current study suggests the procedure of training the communicative skills in the appropriate use of constatives in the process of social interaction with the aim of developing the pragmatic competence of students and helping them acquire their proficiency in achieving certain goals in communication.

«Филологические науки» и их роль в становлении отечественного филологического знания второй половины ХХ века: актуальные проблемы и историческая преемственность (материалы круглого стола)

A roundtable meeting dedicated to the 60th anniversary of the International journal “Philological Sciences. Scientific Essays of Higher School” was held in the Moscow State Linguistic University on December 18, 2018.This report provides a summary of the discussions at the roundtable meeting.

ON THE PROBLEM OF FORMING THE PEDAGOGICAL SKILLS THROUGH VIDEO CONTENTS

The article deals with pedagogical skills in the process of teaching a foreign language through video content. The use of information technology in the training of future foreign language teachers, as well as the use of various visual TCO in the classroom. Development of a model dedicated to pedagogical skills, theater pedagogy and video content technology. In developing the research model, the author of the article relies on the theory of the “dialogue of cultures” and the semiotic concepts of M.M. Bakhtin and V.S. Bibler. The author chooses third-year students of linguistic universities as an object of study, explaining this with 5 reasons. Firstly, third-year students by this time would have mastered all the psychological and pedagogical disciplines, secondly, they know the methods of teaching German, thirdly, they are fluent in German, fourthly, they would have mastered the courses of computer science, and fifthly, they have the ability of working in a team, which is the basis for the development of pedagogical skills. According to the author, the use of various language games in teaching foreign languages plays an important role in developing the future teachers' ability to communicate. It is emphasized in the article that the use of video contents (including theatrical performances, screen versions of literary works, etc.) in the process of learning a foreign language plays an important role in the development of the pedagogical skills of future teachers of foreign languages. The article also discusses the development of speech activity through video content, the implementation of the functions of video content.

ЛИНГВОДИДАКТИЧЕСКИЙ ПОТЕНЦИАЛ РЕКЛАМНЫХ ТЕКСТОВ СОЦИАЛЬНОЙ НАПРАВЛЕННОСТИ В ОБУЧЕНИИ ФРАНЦУЗСКОМУ ЯЗЫКУ СТУДЕНТОВ ЯЗЫКОВЫХ ВУЗОВ

The article identifies a linguo-didactic potential of social advertising texts in teaching French as a foreign language and justifies the reasonability of their usage as one of the most efficient means to form students’ communicative competence, creative thinking, informational and analytical skills. The use of social advertising texts promotes the formation of the value orientations and behavioural stereotypes of modern student youth in linguistic universities. The paper provides examples of social advertising texts use at French lessons.

Содержание обучения студентов языкового вуза грамматике на основе интернет-проектов

Content of teaching foreign languages undergoes inevitable changes in connection with introduction of information and communication technologies. Education as an integral part of life of society has to match the criteria providing high-quality teaching process, at the same time the project method allows to execute the social order of society in more practice oriented approach to teaching. The place of grammar studying in the course of teaching foreign languages was not al-ways unambiguous: there were cases when it was under or overestimated in educational process. However, it is worth mentioning that without well formed grammatical skills of foreign language communication any of the most modern information and communication technologies are not capable to yield qualitative result. We consider a problem of adequate use of Internet projects for university students’ grammatical skills formation as well as an issue of the corresponding content of teaching grammar. Teaching foreign language to students of both linguistic university and other higher educational institutes is directed to formation of all components of foreign language com-municative competence. Project activity, as well as based on it educational Internet projects allow to bring this process of teaching to higher qualitative level. We carry out and develop: a) the analysis of the scientific works devoted to the concept “grammar” and its role in the history; b) the analysis of the researches devoted to selection of subject contents for grammatical skills formation of the students’ speech; c) the author’s subject contents of teaching grammar students of linguistic universities on the basis of implementation of foreign language Internet projects.

ОБЩЕСТВЕННАЯ ЭКСПЕРТИЗА РЕАЛИЗАЦИИ ОБРАЗОВАТЕЛЬНЫХ ПРОГРАММ: ОПЫТ И РЕЗУЛЬТАТЫ

The article presents the methodology of sociological monitoring of the educational programs implementation, developed by a group of researchers of the Sociology Department of the Moscow State Linguistic University, and the results of the public examination of the program for the development of education in Moscow, based on this methodology. The assessment was based on system of indicators, which was developed mainly in view of of the key indicators of the «Capital Education» program for both the program as a whole and its individual parts (subprograms). According to the researchers, the method can be recommended in full or in part to conduct public examination of educational programs at various levels.