THE CONTENT OF DEVELOPING GRAMMATICAL COMPETENCE IN PROSPECTIVE ENFLISH LANGUAGE TEACHERS

Abstract

The article deals with the issue of developing prospective English teachers’ grammatical competence on the basis of context-based approach. The authors assert the following advantages of using texts over separate sentences in studying grammar: being a linguistic embodiment of discourse, texts provide students with both linguistic and extralinguistic information; demonstrate grammatical phenomena in a real-world communicative context, which enables students to develop their communicative skills, cognitive activity and creativity; arouse students’ interest and encourage them to naturally use target grammatical structures in their speech. The focus is on the content of developing grammatical competence, which is revealed in its subject and procedural aspects. The emphasis is put on training and consolidating the skills of using purely grammatical material which is introduced into the communicative process through an algorithm of cognitive actions: perception (through reading and prediction) and formation of students’ own «counter» text-discourse via specially selected texts of various functional styles and genres and tasks developed for them. The suggested activities are aimed at training and consolidating grammatical skills by integrating them into the communicative process: from controlled (identification and commenting, transformation, translation) to semi- controlled exercises and free speech production (expansion, creative writing, discussions, improvisation). These activities contribute not only to the grammatical material absorption and retention but also to the development of students’ cognitive and communicative skills. The conducted research resulted in the practical grammar coursebook «Learning Grammar in Context. Part 1. Sequence of Tenses. Modal Verbs. Oblique Moods» for the Bachelor students, pursuing a degree in foreign language education as prospective English teachers.