AUGMENTED REALITY AS A TOOL FOR TEACHING A FOREIGN LANGUAGE FOR PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES TO STUDENTS OF NON-LINGUISTIC SPECIALTIES

Abstract

The article is devoted to the analysis of the possibilities of using augmented reality (AR) technologies in the process of teaching a foreign language for professional purposes to students of non-linguistic specialties in higher education institutions. The relevance of the study is determined by the growing requirements for the level of professionally oriented foreign language communicative competence of future specialists and the need to implement innovative digital technologies in the educational process. The paper characterizes the essence of augmented reality as an educational tool and identifies its didactic potential in the context of professionally oriented foreign language teaching. The main areas of AR application in foreign language classes are analyzed, including the visualization of professional terminology, modeling communicative situations of future professional activity, the development of oral and written language skills, as well as the formation of students’ learning motivation. Particular attention is paid to the advantages of using augmented reality, namely interactivity, contextualization, and the possibility of integrating learning with a real professional environment. At the same time, the problems and limitations of AR implementation in higher education institutions related to technical support, methodological training of teachers, and the development of high-quality educational content are outlined. It is concluded that the use of augmented reality is a promising direction for improving the methodology of teaching a foreign language for professional purposes to students of non-linguistic specialties and requires further theoretical and empirical research.