From Foreign Languages to a Profession: The Professional Identity Formation During the Lessons of a Foreign Language for Special Purposes (Lexical and Professional Aspects)

Thesis. The authors of the study consider important issues of the professional competencies formation during the process of teaching a foreign language to law students as a process of their professional identity formation. The authors had to identify by interviewing students what types of exercises help them to master their chosen speciality in a foreign language. Methods. The authors rely on comparative, competitive methods, as the interdisciplinary approach principles. Comparing the programmes of teaching a foreign language of speciality and international law, the authors build a system of a single learning process as one of forming a professional identity. Results. Authors of the study tried to build the process methodology of teaching the language of the speciality as a formative one of students’ professional identity. The authors cited as an example the system of methods and exercises used in the language lessons of the speciality, with the aim of formation of not only linguistic but also legal professional competencies. Conclusion. The process of forming a professional identity in the process of studying at a university is one of the most important in the development of the professional personality of a future specialist. Teaching a foreign language in humanitarian universities is an important process which should be revised in accordance with the main discipline teaching programmes. It’s important to create such methodological complexes that would allow the speciality language lessons to bring the learning process as close as possible to a professional one.