THE COMMUNICATIVE APPROACH AS A STRATEGY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE COMPETENCE FORMATION

Abstract

In the article the essence and characteristics of the communicative approach to the formation of foreign language communicative culture of students in high school at foreign language lessons are researched, communicative competence as a result of communication-based learning is characterized, patterns of verbal communication are defined and the principles of the communicative method are outlined. The basic features of teaching methods, techniques and targets used for updating students’ communication abilities are developed. The communicative approach in teaching foreign languages is an approach aimed at developing students’ understanding a foreign language, as well as mastering language material for the speech acts making. The communicative approach, in particular, is to teach students to be well-versed in a foreign environment, as well as to be able to respond adequately to different linguistic situations. This approach develops all the language skills from writing and speaking to reading and listening. Grammar is assimilated in the process of communicating in the language: the student learns the words, phrases, language formulas first and only then he/she begins to understand what they represent in the grammatical sense. Communication is the goal of learning any foreign language. Communicative competence is a specific feature of the students’ personality. This is their ability, that reveals itself in their behaviour and activities, contributing to the solution of practical problems. We have identified some objectives, the most important of which are: to improve educational efficiency through the use of active methods and to provide students with the opportunity to acquire such communication skills that can be used in real-life situations. The development of communicative competence is impossible without training verbal means of oral and written speaking skills. However, knowledge of lexical and grammatical material does not ensure the establishment of communicative skills. It is necessary to form the students’ skills of operating with the educational material to use it later on in the certain areas of communication.