“Филологические науки”/1.Методика  преподавания языка и литературы

Kozenko Maxym

Poltava University of Economics and Trade, Ukraine

FOREIGN LANGUAGES IN THE CARRIER OF THE INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIST

In a present-day Pedagogies and Methods of Teaching the problem of improving the quality of training is becoming more and more important. A qualified specialist in Economics should have skills not only in his professional sphere, but knowledge of a foreign language and culture.

Compared to other countries, such as Japan and the Western European nations, Ukraine is ill-equipped in certain basic respects to take an effective role in the international community. We lack citizens in many professional fields who can communicate in foreign languages and understand other cultures and value systems. For the most part, our schools do not incorporate global perspectives in their curricula. Most college students do not develop the expertise to understand even one foreign language and culture. Consequently, most Ukrainian professionals, whether in business, government, medicine, law, or other fields lack the basic skills needed to cultivate working relationships with colleagues in foreign countries and do not have easy access to new ideas and developments from abroad.

For these reasons, Ukraine needs to train many more professionals who can communicate effectively with foreigners and who are sensitive to cultural differences. First of all, it is necessary to train the trainers because only a trainer with good practical knowledge can provide training at a high level.

An increasing variety of training opportunities exists for language teachers wishing to learn how to teach business foreign languages, foreign business practices, and aspects of foreign culture that affect business relations. For example, each summer the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry offers programs on the use and teaching of commercial French and French business culture. Likewise, the Goethe Institute and Carl Duisberg Centers have periodically organized business German teacher trainer programs. Similar programs for teaching commercial Spanish are available through private educational organizations in Mexico and Spain. In recent years, various universities have developed summer programs for professional development in the teaching of foreign languages and cultures for business. For example, for three years, the University of South Carolina has offered summer seminars on the teaching of commercial Spanish and Hispanic cultures for business, in conjunction with their CIBER; business German training is available at Michigan State University, with support from the MSU CIBER; and San Diego State University has offered training in the teaching of commercial French and French business practices in collaboration with the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Similar professional development opportunities are available for business educators wishing to internationalize their expertise and offerings to students. The American Academy of Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), for example, has periodically organized seminars and workshops for deans, administrators, and directors of business programs on strategies for globalizing the business curriculum. The AACSB has also published curriculum resource guides that provide supplemental material useful in internationalizing various subject areas, such as finance, accounting, marketing, and organizational behavior/human resource management. In collaboration with the Association of American Colleges (AAC), the AACSB has initiated a Business School/Liberal Arts Project to encourage interdisciplinary approaches to international business education. This project has two components: 1) a matching grants program for innovative strategies aimed at globalization and 2) a new publication called Open Borders (starting in fall, 1992) that will disseminate information on models for internationalizing the curriculum through interdisciplinary approaches. The CIBERs are also heavily involved in professional development for business faculty members. The University of South Carolina and the University of Hawaii, for example, hold summer institutes to train business teachers in integrating global dimensions in to their courses. CIBERs at Bentley College, Memphis State University, and other institutions organize summer study tours for business faculty.

A lot of opportunities exist for students to get skills and abilities. Many of the new interdisciplinary business and foreign language programs encourage students to spend some time acquiring practical experience by working for a company, either in the United States or abroad. Other institutions have created study abroad opportunities focused specifically on international business practices and foreign language use. Foreign locations offer the advantages of total immersion, direct contact with foreign business people in a variety of economic sectors, and personal observation of foreign business operations. With references to foreign-based program components and to studies done in the U.S., site visits and work assignments at businesses, chambers of commerce, government agencies, schools, and other locations are a normal part of these new academic programs of study. Such experiences, requiring collaboration with the public and private sectors, are considered by many educators to be essential in laying a broad foundation of professional training and awareness for students who will represent U.S. professions in the world at large. Another component often present in programs combining foreign language and cultural studies with business is access to examinations leading to certificates and diplomas in business foreign languages offered by foreign educational, business, and governmental organizations. Examples are those administered by the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry for French; the Madrid Chamber of Commerce and Industry for Spanish; and the Goethe Institute, Carl Duisberg Centers, and Association of German Chambers of Commerce and Industry for German.

In Economics and Finance there are a lot of majors such as International Economics, International Management, and International Finance etc. In everyday professional activity specialists need foreign languages for reading professional literature, summarizing information, communication with colleagues from foreign countries; business correspondence.

So, it is hard to overestimate the role of studying languages and culture. That is why the abovementioned facts are of paramount importance.