Developing and Improving Professional Skills and Personality Traits as Indicators of Foreign Language Teachers Ability for Applying Personal Approach to the Teaching of Students
Abstract
The subject matter of the article involved is the problem of forming and developing professional skills and personality traits of foreign language teachers for applying personal approaches to the teaching of students. It has been demonstrated that skills of carrying out training goal-setting should be seen as the indicator of the development of foreign language teacher organizational abilities. Components of the indicator have been pointed out, they being necessary to be fixed in defining it. The personality traits characterizing the level of foreign language teacher communicative skills have been defined in terms of the need for developing teacher training abilities. The foreign language teacher’s methodological preparedness has been shown to be defined most exactly when classified into three levels such as inefficient or locally modeling level, efficient or system-modeling level and highly efficient or globally modeling level. Indicators of foreign language teacher methodological preparedness have been pointed out for personality-centered university education. It has been shown that personal, professional and reflexive kinds of preparedness should be seen as interrelated in estimating the foreign language teacher ability for carrying out personality-centered training, factors necessary for assessing it having been presented. Results of the experimental research carried out at the Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology of Russia (MUCTR) and Russian Academy College of Higher Education have shown that personality-centered training can only be carried out by the teachers of efficient or system-modeling methodological preparedness level and highly efficient or globally modeling level.
Keywords: The model of the formation of professional foreign language competence, communicative competence, organizational-pedagogical conditions of foreign language teaching, a set of requirements for foreign language training
1.Introduction
Problems of improving in teaching foreign languages at the university require maximum
rationalization of training and using up-to-date achievements in educational science and psychology,
teacher professional standard and pedagogical abilities being of great significance. Three aspects in
examining pedagogical abilities should be pointed out in foreign language training of future specialists
according to personality-centered approach; the development of which results in forming skills and
personality traits – indicators of the foreign language teacher preparedness for applying the personality-
centered approach in training technological university students, i.e. personal, active and reflexive
aspects.
2.Problem statement
The problem statement is the problem of forming and developing professional skills and personality
traits of foreign language teachers for applying a personal approach to teaching students. It is shown
that the level of personal, active and reflexive aspects of the teacher training ability should be seen as
interrelated for rating foreign language teachers preparedness to apply personal approaches in training
students. It is expected that the only teacher being master of efficient (system-modeling) and highly
efficient (globally modeling) levels of teaching competence can fulfill personality-centered approach to
teaching foreign language; the teaching competence levels involved can be seen as development
indicators of teaching activity and teaching skills. The foreign language teacher being master of the
teaching competence appears to be able to 1) maintain the enjoyment and motivation in acquiring
foreign languages through the whole training period; 2) organize foreign language communication; 3)
use foreign language teaching for actualizing positive features and personal characteristics including it
in the cooperative activity aimed at obtaining results related to the expression of emotional kindness,
empathy, mercy, beneficence and other moral personal features.
3.Research questions
Should the skills of carrying out training goal-setting be seen as the indicator of the development of foreign language teacher organizational abilities?
Have the personality traits characterized the level of foreign language teacher communicative skills, defined in terms of the need for developing teacher training abilities?
Has the foreign language teacher's methodological preparedness been most efficiently defined when classified into three levels such as; inefficient or locally modeling level, efficient or system-modeling level and highly efficient or globally modeling one?
Have indicators of foreign language teacher methodological preparedness pointed out personality-centered university education?
We do not mean to examine each aspect in detail but we confine ourselves to pointing out main indicators of foreign language preparedness for applying personality-centered approach.
1. Indicators of personal preparedness: pedagogical approach or gnostic abilities; educational goal-
setting or organizational abilities; pedagogical abilities or communicative abilities.
2. Indicators of professional preparedness: pedagogical tactics (modeling abilities).
3. Indicators of reflexive preparedness: educational reflection (reflexive abilities).
So, the teacher’s personal, professional, and reflexive preparedness involves their ability to control
themselves and the students.
It is necessary to take into account that the main characteristic of teaching activity is its
effectiveness. So, we can recommend estimating the foreign language teacher preparedness in
accordance with teacher effectiveness levels, the effectiveness involved being necessary to define
teaching competencies. We see teaching competence as the new formation of the teacher's personality
resulting from transforming and developing their mind, operating as a generalized capacity to carry out
teaching and reflexive activity for achieving the certain educational goal, as the ability to explain an
educational act in terms of methodology and psycho-educational science. Let us give characteristics for
teaching competence (TC) levels.
1. TC inefficiency (locally modeling) level is characterized by the following indicators. The teachers
control teaching factors but are not able to see the factors’ correlation depending on the teaching
environment. The education does not result in progress for the student or teacher's development, both
the student and the teacher are being integrated into the educational process. The teaching goes along
with development instead of leading. The teacher uses prepared teaching materials and is unable to
adapt them to new situations. The foreign language is seen as a teaching goal, instead of the way for
personal development.
2. TC efficiency (system-modeling) level is characterized by the teacher's understanding and
controlling the factors of both teaching and reflexive activities and their correlation. The teaching
should be developing the student's personality, the foreign language being used as the way for applying
the personality-centered approach in training. The teacher is able to reflect and carry out the teaching
acts at an upper level. Elements of prepared teaching materials are applied and modeled correctly.
3. The highly efficient or global modeling level is characterized by the teacher being the master of
the educational and training process, as well as understanding the correlation of the factors of both
processes, the teachers being able to create their own rules and their own controlling model for forming
senses and meanings. The educational and training processes are the models for transforming
integrated subject of education, the teacher at a highly efficient level has to be able to carry out
teaching at an intuitive level. We see the global modeling preparedness level of the foreign language
teacher, as the ability to consider the value setting to be more important than goal-setting, to focus on
the human fulfillment for both the teacher and the student. Achieving this level involves converting
personal traits into personal senses and meanings, transforming professional skills into personally
meaningful structures, and reflexive abilities into life meanings.
4.Purpose of the Study
The aim of the study is the problem of forming and developing professional skills and personality
traits of foreign language teachers for applying the personal approach to the teaching of students.
We think that the teachers who are masters of efficient (system-modeling) and highly efficient
(globally modeling) levels of teaching competence can fulfill personality-centered approach to teaching
foreign language; the teaching competence levels involved can be seen as development indicators of
teaching activity and teaching skills. The foreign language teacher who has mastered teaching
competencies appears to be able to 1) maintain the enjoyment and motivation in acquiring foreign
languages through the whole training period; 2) organize foreign language communication; 3) use
foreign language teaching for actualizing positive features and personal characteristics, including it in
the cooperative activity aimed at obtaining results related to the expression of emotional kindness,
empathy, mercy, beneficence and other moral personal features.
We have developed criteria for assessing the foreign language teacher's preparedness in applying the
personality-centered approach to training technological university students.
5.Research Methods
Research methods are the qualitative and quantitative analysis of the results, mathematical statistical
of the processed results, and the questionnaire «Professional Advancement Map»
The research was carried out at the Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology of Russia and
Russian Academy College of Higher Education. Students majoring in foreign language teaching (70
students totally), as well as in teacher refresher training (47 teachers) were involved.
Generally, the experimental training of the grad students and the refresher training of the foreign
language teachers involved applying teaching materials and foreign language communicative training
technology that provide the future foreign language teacher as the professional training subject with the
personal self-fulfillment mechanism.
In the theoretical preparation course the students and foreign language teachers acquired theoretical
knowledge and practical skills aimed at analyzing and teaching of educational and psycho-educational
literature in Russian and foreign languages; collecting linguistic teaching materials for teaching foreign
languages; making up subject projects, class materials, and exercises for teaching students according to
the personality-centered approach.
In the course of experimental research, the students and future teachers, worked with «Professional
Advancement Map», filling it three times: before the university course (at the end of the 8th semester),
before the teacher training work at Mendeleev University (MUCTR) at the end of the 8th semester, and
after the training work at the end of the 9th semester, estimating themselves by 4 score system. These
were the following criteria of estimation: if the capacity for applying the personality-centered approach
in foreign language is bright, it is being shown at the personal trait level – 4 scores; if the capacity is
less bright, it is being shown at the second skill level – 3 scores; if the capacity is not too bright, it is
more often being shown at the skill level – 2 scores; if the capacity is quite poor, it is being shown at
the primary skill level – 1 score; if the capacity is not developed, it not being present at all – 0 score.
Statistical processing of the experimental data made it possible to estimate student skills and determine
the grade of student preparedness for applying the personality-centered approach to foreign language
teaching at technological universities. It was proven experimentally that in the university training
course, the foreign language department students developed personal and professional preparedness for

for applying the personality-centered approach to foreign language teaching. Before the university
course, before the teacher training work, and after the training work
6.Findings
In the course of the experiment, the analysis of changing the indicators of foreign language
department student preparedness for applying the personality-centered approach showed improvements
in teaching abilities, professional activities, and reflexive preparedness for applying the personality-
centered approach to foreign language teaching.
Three levels of foreign language teacher structural activity arrangements such as individual, subject,
and personal levels have been pointed out, their structures, as well as indicators of preparedness for
carrying out personality-centered training, have been defined based on it.
It has been demonstrated that skills of carrying out training goal-setting should be seen as the
indicator of the development of foreign language teacher organizational abilities. Components of the
indicator have been pointed out to be are necessary for defining it.
The personality traits characterizing the level of foreign language teacher communicative skills have
been defined in terms of the need for developing teacher training abilities.
The foreign language teacher methodological preparedness has been shown to be defined most
exactly when classified into three levels such as; inefficient or locally modeling level, efficient or
system-modeling level, and highly efficient or globally modeling one. Indicators of foreign language
teacher methodological preparedness have been pointed out for personality-centered university
education.
It has been shown that personal, professional and reflexive kinds of preparedness should be seen as
interrelated in estimating the foreign language teacher's ability to carry out personality-centered
training, factors necessary for assessing it having been presented.
7.Conclusions
The results of the experimental research carried out at the Mendeleev University of Chemical
Technology of Russia and Russian Academy College of Higher Education, have shown that
personality-centered training can only be performed by teachers of efficient (system-modeling) and
highly efficient (globally modeling) methodological preparedness level. Methodological teaching
materials for developing proper preparedness levels have been presented.
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20 July 2016
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Teacher, teacher training, teaching skills, teaching techniques, organization of education, management of education, FLT, language, language teaching theory, language teaching methods
Cite this article as:
Kuznetsova, T. I., Kuznetsov, I. A., & Zamaletdinov, R. R. (2016). Developing and Improving Professional Skills and Personality Traits as Indicators of Foreign Language Teachers Ability for Applying Personal Approach to the Teaching of Students. In R. Valeeva (Ed.), Teacher Education - IFTE 2016, vol 12. European Proceedings of Social and Behavioural Sciences (pp. 335-340). Future Academy. https://doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2016.07.53