Keyword: «foreign language teacher»

This article is devoted to the formation of professional competence of a foreign language teacher.

The article examines the requirements for teacher training presented in the works of scientists and philologists published in the second half of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century in Germany and the USSR. The purpose of the study is to identify the distinctive features of a highly qualified specialist who worked at schools more than a century ago, and compare them with modern ideas about the competence of a foreign language teacher. The answer to the question which of the analyzed criteria can be considered outdated and which should be recognized as relevant in the 21st century is going to be the conclusion.

In communication it is important to take into account non-verbal signals: voice, gestures, facial expressions. The article examines why it is important for a foreign language teacher to use non-verbal communication correctly, provided that non-verbal signals are responsible for the greatest part of communication and affect the students’ emotions. Cultural differences in the meanings of gestures play a special role in foreign language teaching. Correct usage of nonverbal means and taking into consideration the indicators of students' behavior and state of mind make the lesson more efficient and interesting.

This article examines the issue of the development of functional literacy among schoolchildren by foreign language teachers using supra-professional competences. The relevance of the research is due to the need to implement the requirements of the Federal State Educational Standard for General Education concerning digitalization and individualization of education, which creates a need for new competences of teachers. The development of functional literacy among schoolchildren requires foreign language teachers to have supra-professional competences that ensure the integration of digital technologies and an individual approach in educational practice. Supra-professional competences, which have a metasubject character, consisting in a combination of these processes, meet the requirements of modern educational needs. The aim of the article is to theoretically substantiate and analyze the potential of supra-professional competences of foreign language teachers in the development of functional literacy among schoolchildren in the context of digital transformation of education. The main approaches to studying the problem of functional literacy development in the context of applying supra-professional skills are activity-based, systematic, and meta-disciplinary approaches. The activity-based approach sets the benchmark for research in the professional activity of a foreign language teacher, the systematic approach focuses on the educational process as a single interconnected system, the meta-disciplinary approach allows us to competently combine knowledge from different fields and disciplines, as well as coordinate the processes of digitalization and individualization. The research results include a terminological analysis of the concepts of «supra-professional competences» and «functional literacy», a description of the meta-disciplinary nature of supra-professional competences, a description of the implementation of digitalization and individualization processes in the professional activity of teachers, and the identification of the potential of supra-professional competences to solve the problems of functional literacy development. The theoretical significance of the article lies in the terminological analysis of the concepts of «supra-professional competences» and «functional literacy of schoolchildren». The practical significance lies in determining the prospects for the application of supra-professional competences to solve the professional tasks of foreign language teachers in the field of functional literacy of schoolchildren.