Yablonskaya T. The Didactic Bases of Teaching Foreign Language Reading to Junior Schoolmates

The presented research allowed to determine the psycho-didactic bases of the reading process in general and to describe the regularities of junior schoolmates'perception and comprehension of the information printed in a foreign language in particular. It has been revealed that the psycho-didactic basis of the reading process lies in the fact that the graphic symbols,(which create words, word-combinations and sentences and correlate with some definite meaning) are decoded into a sound sequence. The psychological fundamentals of the reading process consist of perception and comprehension of each language phenomenon, marked by the graphemes. Taking into account the data obtained in the course of the investigation the methods of teaching junior schoolmates' foreign language reading were examined and the reason of their insufficient efficiency has been found out. It appeares to lie in the fact of underestimation of the general didactic principles when teaching foreign language reading and considering reading only from the point of view of linguodidactics and methods. In order to shape the optimal way of developing skills in foreign language reading teaching under the elementary school conditions the principles of teaching the above-stated type of communication has been worked out. These principles are based on the general didactic concept of individually oriented teaching and make it possible to regard the real psycho-physiological and linguistic capacities of the majority of children to perceive, comprehend, memorize and analyze the information acquired in the process of reading. Some components of teaching contents have been determined in relation to sequence of their introduction: starting with learning letters, their spelling and reading rules in different word-combinations and completed with the stage of fluent and correct reading habit based on a well-known language material. Further on with the view to develop the habit of reading complicated fables involving the language conjecture. The enumerated components of teaching contents in foreign language reading conditioned the corresponding stages in the process of teaching and the degrees of bilingual state. They served as the base to develop the didactic model aimed at teaching to read as one of the aspects of speech activity. The developed model includes: a) purposeful teaching aimed at perception and comprehension if the text being read at the motivation stage. It corresponds to receptive bilinguism that can be achieved with the help of pre-text exercises; b) purposeful teaching aimed at obtaining and expounding the factual information from the text at the analitical and synthetic stage. It corresponds to reproductive bilinguism that can be achieved with the help of textual exercises; c) purposeful teaching aimed at creative processing of the text information and its individual expounding at the text and correct stage.. It corresponds to productive bilinguism that can be achieved with the help of post-text exercises. These conclusions present the results of the conducted experimental study; they have confirmed the proposed hypothesis: there exist the possibility to perfect the system of teaching junior schoolmates foreign language reading by means of: a) teaching reading in interaction with other aspects of foreign language activities while operating with the same vocabulary and grammar material; b) teaching reading contents components singled out from the general-didactic components of educational contents, their sequence of introduction must be based on psychological and physiological capability of the majority; c) developing the above-mentioned components on the basis of didactic principles and regularities of teaching process. The above mentioned facts permit to regard the outerned tasks as being resolved since the psycho-didactic bases of the reading process has been defined; the junior schoolmates' regularities of perceiving and understanding a foreign language printed information have been stated; the techniques aimed at teaching junior schoolmatesforeign language reading have been analyzed; the didactic principles of teaching foreign language reading to junior schoolchildren have been worked out; the components of teaching contents at the elementary stage of foreign language teaching have been distinguished; the didactic model of teaching foreign language reading to junior schoolmates has been developed. It guarantees to form all skills with the majority of the pupils. The book recommended for light reading at elementary school has been published; the developed teaching model constitutes its theoretical grounds. The school-book was introduced in ten schools in Odessa, Zaporozye and Nicolaev regions.