Role of Foreign Language Teacher Shaping Students ’ Research Skills

Nowadays many foreign language teachers are not enough aware about the significance of the research component within their profile discipline, arguing that students even in their native language do not have enough use of fundamentals in their scientific professional activities. Therefore, this article is aimed to study the role of foreign language teacher when mastering students’ research skills in the process of learning English as a foreign language. The study results have confirmed that process of mastering students’ research skills when learning foreign language is directly connected with their teacher’s own research skill level. These article materials have practical value both for foreign language teachers and for students enrolled for foreign languages programs of education sciences faculties at high schools.


Introduction
Without defining the role of foreign language teacher who arranges cognitive activities and student's personal development process, successful creative and intellectual development of future professional cannot take place.V. T. Aschenkov has authenticated that teacher's high status stability can be guaranteed only when he appears as a research scientist himself (Aschenkov, 1989).From N. V. Kuzmina's and A. A. Rean's viewpoint, the very learning process at high schools should be the subject for scientific research, and the research approach to students' training and educating should be the driving style of teaching activities at universities (Kuzmina & Rean, 1993).
Teachers do not always realize the significance of acquiring students' research skills when learning foreign languages, justifying their position by tough time limits for "Foreign Language" discipline, and this fact leaves no room for acquired knowledge analysis (Lopatina, 2009.).Natural process of logical perception is being excluded from study process, even if it is here to contribute to research skills mastering.At the same time, the fact that reflection plays a decisive role in language skills development is being disregarded.In addition, multiple thoughtless repetition is not efficient at developing a creative thinking (Shaidullina & Ivanenko, 2012).

Materials and Methods
In order to conduct this study the following methods have been used: research and generalization of innovative teaching practices; in-depth analysis of foreign language departments experience at universities; analysis of local and foreign educational programs including textbooks and manuals in terms of their subject and content; psycho-pedagogical, sociological data collection methods (teacher's survey, questionnaires and interviews, teaching experience analysis as well as students and teachers performance results analysis); statistical analysis and research results interpretation and their mathematical processing and some others.Research had been conducted in 3 stages: First stage (preparatory)-resulting material had been generalized, essential characteristics of person's research competence had been identified; choice of science-based searching methods had been determined; research methods program had been elaborated.
Second stage (main)-modern requirements for foreign language teaching content had been uncovered; both local and foreign teaching methods of foreign language had been included in the research, since its them to ensure integrity and regularity of mastering students' research skills in economics program; reasons behind low level of mastering students' research skills had been identified; scientific and methodological support for foreign language teachers in order to shape students research skills in process of language study had been elaborated.
Third stage (final)-systematization, generalization and pedagogical interpretation of study's empirical results had been carried out; experimental verification of scientific and methodological support for foreign language teachers in order to shape students' research skills during learning process had been conducted as well.

Results
We have developed and introduced a special course "Students' research skills: its features in process of foreign language study" for teachers of discipline "Foreign Language".This course contributes to the choice of optimal content of foreign language teaching methods, aimed at creating students' research skills.
In order to research teachers' viewpoints about an issue of training and methodological support usage during educational process at high schools we have conducted certain interviews.As a result of this study we have revealed that in process of updating foreign language teaching content in modern conditions it is crucial to focus on several aspects: 1) trainee should be in the center of learning process regarding his needs and interests; 2) other students should be regarded as a collaboration group where dialogues, mutual aid, and self-assessment take place; 3)teacher should act as coordinator and assistant to trainee when needed;4) it is crucial to increase student's motivation to study foreign language by introducing interesting and useful information which can be implemented in his future professional activity; 5) There should be a vivid skills improvement of students' independent work (using books, reference literature, dictionaries, online sources, etc.) 6) foreign language learning content is a good base to shape research skills (Lopatina & Ratner, 2011).
On final experiment stage, we analyzed certain factors affecting research skills development level.To make it more effective we split study groups into four subgroups: 1) Groups where teachers have scientific degrees, conduct scientific studies or participate in scientific research grants; they are totally aware of this activity importance; 2) groups where teachers have scientific degrees, but they are engaged in research activities according to their Department's research plan; 3) groups where teachers have scientific degrees and teachers who are engaged in their PhDs preparation; 4) groups, where teachers do not have scientific degrees and they are not involved in any research activity.
The level of research skills development had been measured and analyzed while experiment in such groups.To develop students' research, creative and cognitive activity the teacher also has to look for various ways to create a special educational atmosphere that encourages creativity.Modern high school teacher should use not reproductive teaching methods in his professional activity, but vice versa, productive methods aimed at developing student's creative potential.These include the following: learning technology through cooperation, aimed at socialization and communicative skills formation in students' mutual active study process while learning a foreign language; project method, meaning work with a variety of information sources in a foreign language in order to improve certain aspects of speech etiquette and research skills development; method of situational analysis, aimed at learning practical skills to work with information in a foreign language: extraction, structuring and ranking problems on importance basis and students' communicative competence development; learning technology for spontaneous speech, allowing students to acquire skills of oral speech in a foreign language within relatively short time period and due to creative exercises application; Internet technologies help to intensify learning process, motivate students' cognitive activity through participation in testing, quizzes, competitions, contests, onlineconferences and others.
Thus, our experiment on implementation of scientific and methodological support in order to prepare and train teachers of "Foreign Language" discipline, lets the teacher to choose optimal content and teaching methods of foreign language, to create students' research skills within economic educational programs.
Nevertheless the analysis of scientific and pedagogical literature about the topic under study and our practical experience suggest that there is an the absence of scientific training support and of foreign language teachers professional development aimed to form students' research skills within this particular discipline.

Conclusion
The study results have confirmed that process of mastering students' research skills when learning foreign language is directly connected with their teacher's own research skill level.In this connection, the authors have developed and tested a special course "students research skills and their formation during foreign language learning process " for the teachers of "Foreign Language" discipline contributing to the choice of optimal content and study methods.All this is aimed at creating a students' research competence.The need to develop this special course was caused by the fact that many foreign language teachers are not enough aware about the significance of the research component within their profile discipline, arguing that students even in their native language do not have enough use of fundamentals in their scientific professional activities.

Recommendations
Based on problem's survey results about students' research skills formation and their development in secondary and high schools it is promising to research it in other studies as well.It is up to date not only at foreign language studies, but within other study disciplines as well, it can be also useful at forming foreign language teachers' methodological culture.
Two students and teachers groups at Kazan Federal University and Kazan National Research Technical University named after A. N. Tupolev took part in this empirical experimental work.46 teachers at Kazan Federal University and 32 teachers at Kazan National Research Technical University named after A. N. Tupolev took part in training programs improving their qualifications.

Table 1 .
Levels of students' research skills formation depending on their teachers' activity types , level of research skills development of students is significantly higher.Nevertheless, during experimental work preparation we have revealed low interest level from teachers' side not only towards their own research activity but also towards students' research activities.We have elaborated the questionnaire that allowed us to determine motivation level as well as cognitive and activity-based components within educational research process.Questionnaire result prior the specific course has shown that teachers are quite familiar with students' research activity types, but are little aware about teachers research activities.The research activities importance was mainly pointed out for university development (8.5 points in average), then for students (7.8 points), but the importance of this activity for teachers was the modest-only 5.1 points, although respondents' majority did not consider the payment a compulsory factor (79%).Teachers noted that the most motivated for research activities are first and fourth year students, but there are only 15% teachers involved in this activities, the others believe that the initiative for research should come from student himself or university management, but not from them.46 teachers at Kazan Federal University and 32 teachers at Kazan National Research Technological University named after A. N. Tupolev had graduated this training courses within this program.In order to record survey results we had interviewed teachers at start and finish of the course.
Single factor dispersion analysis showed that at significance level α = 0, 05 research skills development level of teachers affects students' research skills development level as well.In groups where teachers are involved in research activities

Table 2 .
Teachers interview results before and after the course