ИСТИНА

Technological university students have to study foreign languages in order to get ready for international interaction necessary for sufficient technology exchange and development. Nowadays the most common foreign language taught at educational institutions in Russia (as well as in numerous other countries) is English – the present-day global language. Being fluent in this language means facilitating the access to the necessary information (e.g. about the latest technology) from all over the world. In the digital age, with the Internet (“the global network”) becoming an everyday reality (and even necessity), the opportunities for obtaining the information from all parts of the world have increased immensely, especially for those who know English (the most common language online). For the citizens of Russia, most of whom hardly ever go abroad (university students being no exception), it means increasing both the awareness of the global issues and the enthusiasm for learning English. For EFL teachers and students it means much easier access to the learning material (texts, videos, etc.) presented in English. For technological university students, learning English mainly for professional purposes, it is normally the material connected with various aspects of technology. Yet, as far as multinational collaboration is concerned, cultural aspects (especially crosscultural communication) are also taken into consideration. In the case described, English is needed for global communication rather than for visits to the countries where this language is spoken on a daily basis, so the information presented and discussed in English at Russian technological universities mostly has a global nature and does not necessarily refer to the English-speaking countries (if it does, it is largely due to these countries’ achievements in technology rather than their being “the natural habitat” of the English language). Thus teaching English to students of a Russian technological university inevitably contributes to their education as global citizens.