Bilingual cognitive map in the space of teaching public administration: a russian case

Abstract

The introduction of bilingual programs for future bureaucrats turned out to be a great challenge. In Russia this is one of the “classic” areas, in which the spirit of conservatism and collectivism prevails. In this area, the idea of teaching in English may be perceived with hatred: English can invade the closed area communication of offi cials, to make the excessive diversity of their contacts and violate patriotism and national identity. We used a cognitive map approach. It allows us to create diff erent kinds of cognitive maps and teaching materials for university students who need to learn in one course the terminology in both languages. The results show that the study of the subject/course in English is not harmful to the development of professional Russian language. It was confi rmed by the individual discussion in Russian. At the same time, the skills of reading articles in English were signifi cantly improved.