Building Foreign Language Competence of Future Philologists Through Integrated Learning

Abstract

The aim of this study was to identify and evaluate the effect of different aspects of integrated learning on building foreign language competence of future philologists. The research involved a pedagogical experiment with the introduction of integrated learning. The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) was used to determine the impact of this approach on the students’ academic performance in English. Besides, the level of foreign language competence was established by using the criteria proposed by O. Bihych. It was found that the integration of the content of the academic subject and a foreign language is more effective in building foreign language competence than the traditional study of a foreign language. However, it has less effect than the integration of linguistic, intercultural and communicative components of foreign language competence, the latest technologies, interactive learning methods, and the integration of online and offline learning. It was established that integrated learning has the highest effect on building a foreign language competence, provided that all its aspects are simultaneously introduced into the educational process.