D. Hrynenko

Institute of Pedagogy, Ukraine

Comparison of Teaching Methods in the Foreign Languages Education of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ukraine

The proclamation of independence of Ukraine in 1991, our country's efforts to become an equal member of the European community, the impact of globalization on the world processes in various aspects of society, its humanization, development of international relations predetermined the necessity for cooperation of our country with other states. Such changes actualized the need to improve national foreign language education paying a special attention at the teaching methods as the basis for the effective teaching process.

First of all, it is noteworthy to state there are some similarities in the choice of teaching methods of both countries. According to the results of our research, communicative approach is widely applied in the comprehensive educational institutions in both countries. As one of the British scholars states, communicative approach is "a set of training methods that make a special emphasis on the functional and structural aspects of language ... and prefer the skills of speaking and listening» [4, p. 29], although writing and reading also play an important role in learning foreign languages in British schools. Under these conditions, any task should include the following:

- goal;

- verbal or non-verbal information (pictures, written text, etc.);

- way of presenting the material;

- methodological aspects of learning (e.g., group or pair work);

- the results of studies [3, p. 30-31]

Another methodological approach that is popular with both British and Ukrainian foreign language teachers is integrated one. Its efficiency is apparent in view of the advantages that were noticed by the teachers and the students during its application in the foreign language learning. It was found out that an integrated approach not only enables students to learn the language by justifying and applying acquired skills in practice, but also provides for interdisciplinary connections. Furthermore, in both countries it was noticed that integrated approach leads to the development of each student’s autonomy; at the same time, it gives a teacher the opportunity to continue professional development, collaborate with the specialists from other disciplines, and develop a curriculum that can meet the needs of students. Positive lay-outs in the area of foreign language education became obvious due to the increasing number of students who are willing to learn foreign languages [2, p. 218].

Besides the abovementioned approaches to teaching foreign languages, we find it necessary to underscore the task-based approach, which promotes the development of a child’s skills to apply their knowledge in practical situations, find some ways to integrate socio-cultural and natural environment; besides, it makes the educational process focused on the development of individual skills, the use of acquired knowledge in the life of the subjects, the adaptation of the individual in society, his/her professional self-realization, forming of abilities to collective action, etc.

In their turn, British teachers prefer the task-based approach, according to which the main role is played by the linguistic act or task that you must complete to take a step forward in learning a foreign language. To ensure the effectiveness of task-based approach there are important requirements that apply to each task. Firstly, a task should be just one, not a few (like a shopping list, things to take to a desert island, etc.). Secondly, a task requires student’s autonomy, for example, the work necessary to build such a way that the child was not able to borrow the idea from the other students or to copy them. Thirdly, the language used in the task, should correspond to the vocabulary used in real life by the native speakers and, fourthly, it is more important than form [1, p. 4].

However, the analysis of the corresponding sources has determined some differences in the methodology of teaching foreign languages in the UK and Ukraine. For instance, in the latest state standards in basic and secondary education, which will take effect in high school in the 2018/2019 school year, some other priority methodical approaches to teaching foreign languages in national schools were identified. They were the following:

- personality-oriented approach, which is to ensure the development of academic, socio-cultural, socio-psychological and other abilities of students and directing the educational process in interaction and personal development of a teacher and a student on the basis of equality in communication and partnership;

- competence-based approach that considers the formation of key competencies and subject orientation of the educational process to achieve academic results, which are the key, and general core subject expertise [].

In conclusion, we have determined several differences between Ukrainian and British methodology of teaching. The main of them is the fact that the Ukrainian methodology of teaching foreign languages is more varied as it applies a vast range of approaches. This list is more limited in the UK, but still, the effectiveness of foreign languages teaching remains evident.

References

1. Ducker N. Enriching the Curriculum with Task-Based Instruction / Nathan Ducker // Polyglossia. – 2012. – Vol. 22. – P. 3-13.

2. Folder C. Living Languages: an Integrated Approach to Teaching Foreign Languages in Secondary Schools / Clare Folder. - London: Routledge, 2013. – 304p.

3. Gunduz M. Communicative Orientation in the Language Class and the Effect of the of Activity Types on Interaction: a thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy / Muge Gunduz. – University of Leicester, 2004. – 359p.

4. Song M. Participant Perception about Speaking and Listening in Modern Foreign Language Classes in China and England and their Relationship to Classroom Practices: a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy / Min Song. – University of Warwick, 2013. – 433p.

5. State Standards for the Basic and Comprehensive Education / Ministry of Education and Youth and Sport of Ukraine, 2016. – 11p.