DEVELOPMENT OF COGNITIVE SKILLS WHILE ACHIEVING FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEXICAL COMPETENCE OF PROSPECTIVE IT SPECIALISTS

Abstract

The article deals with the analysis of the peculiarities of operation and development of cognitive skills while developing foreign lexical competence of prospective IT specialists. The issue of mastering the complex of cognitive skills that have an immediate impact on the effectiveness of acquisition of IT specialists’ lexical competence hasn’t received serious consideration. The essence and structure of foreign language lexical competence of prospective IT specialists are outlined. Foreign language lexical competence of prospective IT specialists is considered as an ability and readiness to adequately understand and use lexical units and terms in the process of foreign language communicative activity. The structure of foreign language lexical competence of prospective IT specialists includes lexical knowledge, lexical skills and lexical awareness. High concentration of attention provides durability of memorization, causes rapid and lengthy associative links in memory while acquiring foreign vocabulary. The vital factor of acquisition of foreign vocabulary is the character of learning assignments that are notable for novelty, crucial issues and situations, bear personal importance for learners. Emergence of visual images of English words in students’ minds make words penetrate into long-term memory. Timely retention of the lexical units from long-term memory facilitates development of the main types of memory (sensor, short-term and long-term memories). Memorization takes place by the principle: image + action = memory. The information that is stored in short-tem memory can be transferred into long-tem memory by its repetition and visualization. Receptive and productive lexical skills maintain the functions of long-term memory while developing foreign lexical competence of IT specialists.The communicative situations (problem solving) of professional foreign language communication of IT specialist perform the function of the context of foreign vocabulary acquisition. The scientists offer an array of methods of problem solution: abstraction, analogy, brain storming, “division and win”, hypothesis testing, proof, analysis of causes and effects The skills of time management and eliminations of distracters allow to focus attention while doing learning assignments. Management of learning time envisages to set a general goal and a system of objectives for a definite period and to gradually extend balance between the span of focused attention and amount of the processed information.