FOSTERING RESEARCH COMPETENCE IN STUDENTS THROUGH THE IMPLEMENTATION OF COUNTRY-STUDIES PROJECTS IN THE CONTEXT OF APPLIED LINGUISTICS

Abstract

The article examines the pedagogical conditions for the development of research competence among students of German philology through the implementation of country studies projects. The ability to conduct independent research is an important element of the competence-based paradigm of modern philological education and the high-quality training of future specialists and scholars. One of the ways to develop this ability is the introduction of research projects of various orientations and thematic focuses. Projects with a country studies component, which illustrate the connection between language and the sociocultural environment, are particularly relevant as they demonstrate real and living interrelations between cultural spaces, increase students’ interest in research activity within familiar contexts, and contribute to the popularization of studying foreign languages and cultures. The introduction and implementation of projects on relevant country studies topics are considered at different stages of university education and with regard to the structural components of research competence (cognitive, operational-activity, motivational, reflective, etc.). Project-based activity in the field of country studies is substantiated through a particular emphasis on the development of students’ key competences and is proposed through its integration into courses in country studies, discourse analysis, and sociolinguistics. Within the framework of the described study, a model example of a country studies project for students is proposed, namely “Deutsche Spuren in Ivano-Frankivsk”, on the basis of which the positive aspects of implementing similar projects are described and possible difficulties that may arise are analyzed, especially during the implementation of projects at the initial levels of language learning as well as at the early stages of research activity. Through reflection on the implemented project, the future prospects of similar and other studies are outlined, and it is demonstrated that the combination of applied linguistics and intercultural analysis contributes to the development of research activity, critical thinking, academic writing, and the interpretation of linguistic phenomena within a sociocultural context.