Language and Culture Complementarity as a Tool for Creating a Holistic Pragmatically Induced Professional Competence of University Graduates

Abstract

Abstract. The present paper deals with the issues of university graduates’ competences complying with the contemporary labor market requirements. The main attention is paid to foreign languages (mostly English) acquisition. In the context of globalization (and ‘globanglization’ as associated process), ESP is an effective tool for social and professional adaptation. The bilateral process of teaching and studying English is inseparably connected with the development of cross-cultural awareness which can be determined as the ‘fifth skill’ – the ability of learners to be aware of cultural relativity following reading, writing, listening, and speaking. The research objective is of descriptive origin and focuses on determining the most effective ways for achieving language and culture complementarity with university graduates. The harmonization of acquiring language and cultural knowledge is methodologically based on the universal principle of complementarity, which demonstrates the new paradigm of worldview, universalism and the synergistic nature of modern research, education and methodology. The principle of complementarity leads to the development and application of an interdisciplinary and integrated approach to the analysis of language and cultural phenomena in the classroom context.