DEVELOPMENT OF THE TEACHER’S LANGUAGE AWARENESS

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the study of development of linguistic consciousness among teachers of Russian as a foreign language (RKI) in Uzbekistan. A survey is conducted among 205 teachers with the aim to identify the peculiarities of their understanding of the concepts of “linguistic consciousness” and “linguistic awareness.” The results show that the majority of respondents focus on the following aspects. The first cluster – awareness of language structure and rules – reflects the opinion of 70% of respondents who view linguistic awareness as the ability to understand the grammatical and lexical elements of language and their use in various communication contexts. The second cluster – knowledge of vocabulary and grammatical rules without considering the context – is selected by 12% of respondents, indicating a traditional approach to teaching focused on memorization without practical application. The third cluster, including 16% of the responses, is related to understanding the influence of language on the formation of stereotypes and social interactions. The fourth cluster – multilingualism without an emphasis on grammar, represented by only 6% of respondents – implies a superficial knowledge of languages without analysis of their structures. Based on the data obtained, practical recommendations were proposed to enhance the level of linguistic consciousness and overall professional development of RKI teachers, including the organization of professional development courses, the implementation of practice-oriented teaching methods, the cultivation of critical thinking skills among students, and the establishment of professional communities for knowledge exchange. These measures aim to improve the quality of teacher training and their ability to adapt to the changing conditions of the educational process in Uzbekistan.