Approaches to teaching agricultural university students a foreign language for professional communication

Currently, there are three methodical approaches in the methods of teaching a professional foreign language: 1) a foreign language for specific purposes, 2) teaching specialized disciplines in a foreign language, and 3) an integrated approach. Each of them is focused on achieving specific learning objectives. Content and language integrated learning has a significant professional and linguodidactic potential. Its distinguishing feature lies in the fact that within the framework of one integrated course, students simultaneously develop a professional foreign language communicative competence and professional competencies. The purpose of the research is to compare these three methodical approaches to learning and determine which of them are used in teaching students of agricultural universities. The study showed that at the moment the subject-thematic content of integrated courses has been developed for students of such areas of study as “Agrochemistry and Agrosoil Science”, “Gardening”, “Agroengineering” and “Technology of Production and Processing of Livestock Products”. The methodical dominant in the context of the implementation of integrated learning is the system of problematic foreign language professional tasks. Typologies of such tasks and professional cases were developed for students of the areas of study “Agroengineering” and “Technology of Production and Processing of Livestock Products”. As for students of other areas of training of an agricultural university, at the moment they are studying a foreign language for specific purposes.

professional foreign language, foreign language for specific purposes, content and language integrated learning, agricultural university