V.
Kasyanova
Kostanay State University named after A.Baitursynov, Kazakhstan
Professionally-oriented education through a foreign language
Further
development of business and cultural relations of Kazakhstan with the countries
of the world community has shown that there is a need for specialists who speak
foreign languages in their professional activities. Today, an
important criterion for professionalism in any field of work is readiness for a
business dialogue in a foreign language, since the successful outcome of
business contacts with foreign partners depends on the language competence and
skills of these specialists. Today, therefore,
students' training in speaking a foreign language is of particular importance
and is an integral part of professional education. Knowledge of a foreign
language opens a future specialist access to
foreign sources of information, without which
it is currently impossible to imagine the activity of modern specialists. The
ability to work with original literature on specialty includes getting the
information contained in the text and its critical reflection, synthesis,
analysis and assessment of the reliability. Foreign language competence ensures
the readiness of graduates of the University to use successfully gained
knowledge. Currently, more than
half of the world's scientific and technical literature is published in foreign
languages. In the context of a common information space, if a specialist
doesn't possess the knowledge of a foreign language then only the minimum of
necessary information from the translated books, articles, reports in the area
of his interest is available.
At present the purpose of the system of higher education
is to train a competent specialist, professionally qualified, able to organize
various activities. In connection with
it a professional-oriented approach to learning a foreign language at
non-language faculties of universities becomes relevant. This approach involves
the formation of the students' ability to foreign language communication in
specific professional, business and scientific spheres and situations, and also
the formation and development of students' skills and abilities to work with
the text, its translation, referencing and retrieval of useful information from
the original literature of a relevant profile.
The main essence of professionally-oriented foreign language teaching
lies in its integration with subspecialties in order to obtain additional
professional knowledge and the formation of professionally significant
qualities of a person. A foreign language in this case is a means of enhancing
professional competence, personal and professional development of students, and
is a prerequisite for their successful career. M.V. Lyahovitsky made a great contribution to the development of the
theory of professionally-oriented foreign language teaching. He justified the
principle of a professional orientation of educational material for teaching a
foreign language at non-language faculties. The author singles out the
following types of activities according to the specificity of profiling
specialties: work on specific texts; studying special topics for the
development of a spoken language; studying the dictionary - the minimum for the
relevant specialty; creation of manuals for enhancing grammatical and lexical
material.
E.V.Roshchina notes that in the process of studying
professionally-oriented language material two-way communication between the
student's desire to acquire the experience and success of language learning is
established. Considering a foreign language as an effective means of
professional and social orientation in non- language faculties, the author stresses
the need to comply with the following conditions:
- a clear statement of the
objectives of foreign language speech activity;
- social and professional
orientation of these activities;
- satisfaction of students in
solving particular problems;
- formation of students’ skills in
creative approach to solving particular problems;
- a favorable psychological climate
in the students’ team.
The analysis of the pedagogical literature has shown that an
important condition for the success of a professionally-oriented educational
process is the selection and organization of learning content. It should be
focused on the latest developments in a particular field of human activity, in
a timely manner to reflect scientific advances in the areas of direct professional
interests of students.
N.D. Galskova noted that the content of the foreign
language teaching should include: 1) the scope of communication activities,
themes and situations, speech acts and speech material, taking into account the
professional orientation of students;
2) language material (phonetic,
lexical, grammatical, spelling), the rules for its design and operating skills;
3) a set of special (verbal) skills that characterize the level of practical
mastery of a foreign language as a medium of communication, including
intercultural situations; 4) a system of knowledge of national and cultural
characteristics and realities of the country
of the studied language; 5) learning and adaptive skills, rational
techniques of mental work ensuring the culture of language learning in the
educational environment and the culture of communication with its carriers.
According
to this, we can point out the following structural elements of a substantial
component of professionally-oriented foreign language teaching:
- communication skills by type of
speech activity (on the basis of general and professional vocabulary);
- language knowledge and skills;
- socio-cultural knowledge;
- learning skills.
Speaking is a two-way process made up of the ability to
speak a foreign language (expressive aspect of speech), and the ability to
understand the speech of others (receptive oral speech). A monologue form of
communication involves the possession of such methods of presentation as
description, narration, communication, reasoning, proof. This requires the
formation of the following communicative skills of the students: the ability to
describe, explain, inform and prove.
A form of communication in a dialogue requires the ability
to freely enjoy certain clichés inherent to this form of speech; the
ability to understand speech of the interlocutor; the ability to respond
immediately to the statement of the interlocutor; the ability to continue the
conversation, i.e. make such remarks, which will force the interlocutor to
respond to the remarks.
A special attention in the process of professionally-oriented foreign
language teaching is paid to the development of listening skills. Listening is
a kind of receptive speech activity, which includes perception and listening
comprehension. It presupposes the students' possession of the following skills:
a) to use the language and contextually guess the meaning of unfamiliar words;
b) to rely on the information preceded by audio text, the plan, key words of
the text, its structure and storyline in the knowledge of the subject of the
message; c) to recognize the types of sentences by intonation; d) to use as a
helpful hints of headings and subheadings; e) to clear up parts with the help
of repeated questions; f) to compare, classify information in accordance with
specific learning objectives; g) to summarize the information in writing.
An important role in learning a foreign language is given
to professionally-oriented reading. One of the important characteristics of
professionally-oriented reading is taking into account the basic features of
reading as a verbal written communication - reception and assignment of
experience, all the accumulated knowledge from one generation to another, from
one group of people to another, from one person to another. Broadening
professional outlook and professional development are impossible without
reading. The essential
characteristic of a professionally-oriented reading is that it implies, as a
rule, a large number of sources and an abundance of textual material, as the
flow of scientific and economic information is growing every year. Also
professionally-oriented reading involves using the source many times. Reading is a specific form of communication and interaction of people in
the course of professional work. Flexibility in the use of reading literature
on the specialty, the possibility of permanent and repeated use of sources of
information make reading the most effective tool for producing, organizing and
using the information necessary for any kind of human activity. Thus, listening
and reading, representing a certain group of cognitive and communicative
skills, have an impact on the cognitive activity of students. Understanding authentic texts and auditive information is connected with
the implementation of mental operations that contribute to the intellectual
development of students with the ability to get new information.
Writing is a productive
analytic-synthetic activity related to a product of the written text. In this
type of activity the ultimate objectives are the formation of the following
skills: to describe directly events, facts and phenomena; to report, request
information, to make a detailed plan;
to express own judgment, opinion;
to comment on the events and facts from the written text of the
arguments and emotional evaluation language tools; to make up a detailed plan or abstracts for oral
communication; to create secondary
texts (essays, annotations); to use
factual information in the perception or interpretation of printed text.
Speaking skills and knowledge of grammar are the basis for
the development of language skills of students at non-language faculties. They
include skills of formation (i.e. the formation of case endings of nouns and
adjectives, personal endings of verbs, etc.) and skills of making up sentences.
An essential role in the development of an individual
student plays a sociocultural component in the content of a foreign language
teaching. It allows the teacher to broaden general, social, cultural horizons
of students, to stimulate their cognitive and intellectual processes, to teach
them to be tolerant (verbal and non-verbal) towards members of their society
and of other cultures. The next
structural element of the substantive component of the professionally-oriented
foreign language teaching is learning ability of students. They include the
following abilities: to work with reference books, to build logically and
consistently statements, to make educational records, to capture information
concisely.
Thus,
a substantial component of professionally-oriented learning a foreign language
is made up of all that is involved in the teaching activities of the teacher,
the student's educational activities, teaching material, as well as the process
of its assimilation. Teaching a professionally-oriented language involves
thematic conditionality of used training materials. Interest in the subject
will increase and become practically meaningful when students can clearly understand
the prospects of using gained knowledge, when useful skills become the purpose
of training, which in the future will be especially valuable.
Professionally-oriented foreign language teaching broadens a future
specialist’s outlook, allows to carry out professional activities more
successfully particularly with foreign partners.
References:
1.
Ляховицкий М.В. О некоторых базисных категориях методики обучения иностранным
языкам. / М.В.Ляховицкий // Иностранные языки в школе.- 1973,- №1.- С.27 - 34.
2. Гальскова
Н.Д., Гез Н.И. Теория обучения иностранным языкам. Лингводидактика и методика.
/ Н.Д.Гальскова, Н.И.Гез. – Москва, 2007. – С.132.
3.Образцов
П.И. Профессионально-ориентированное обучение иностранному языку на неязыковых
факультетах вузов / П.И.Образцов, О.Ю.Иванова. – Орел: ОГУ, 2005. – 36с.
4. Рощина
Е.В. Функции иностранного языка как учебного предмета в системе обучения в
университете / Е.В.Рощина // Иностранные языки на неспециальных факультетах:
межвуз.сб.-Л.: Изд-во Ленингр. ун-та,1978.