INTERACTIVE METHODOLOGICAL WORKSHOP AS A MEANS OF SOFT SKILLS FORMATION IN THE PROFESSIONAL TRAINING OF A FUTURE FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHER

Abstract

The article in question deals with the problems of future foreign language teachers’ professional development in the higher institutions. The authors find it necessary to consider soft skills as an important component of future teachers’ professional competency. The article contains the results of the questionnaire held in the Institute of Foreign Philology of the Zhytomyr Ivan Franko university thorough analysis of which enabled the authors to determine the factors preventing from the effective development of future teachers’ soft skills. The article contains a table of universal and specific for a foreign language teacher soft skills selected by the authors. The study of foreign and Ukrainian scientists’ points of view on the problem of soft skills’ formation and development convinced the authors of the importance and the necessity of these skills formation during future teachers’ professional development in the university. It is expedient in the authors’ opinion to realize the development of future foreign language teachers’ soft skills on the basis of an integrative-interactive model which will stimulate the students for independent organization of knowledge and search for professional decisions in cooperation. The organization of such methodological interactive workshops on the principles of French Group of New Education is being described. Each stage of such a workshop is illustrated with the examples of the creative tasks and critical thinking techniques which enable future teachers to demonstrate their levels of soft skills formation, to evaluate them and, if necessary, to plan the ways of their improvement. The article describes the prospects for further research in this area.