TEACHING STYLISTIC GRAMMAR AS A METHODOLOGICAL ISSUE

Introduction. This study explores the issue of stylistic grammar and the methodology of teaching it to University students – teacher-trainees. The purpose of this article is to analyze registers and styles of foreign language communication, specify their discriminative features, and devise a relevant methodology incorporating the stages of instruction and a corresponding system of stylistically oriented activities. Results. In the article, fostering learners’ stylistic competence is identified as a target of learning stylistic grammar. Respectively, stylistic competence is defined as students’ ability to produce a spoken or written output relevant to a communicative setting when exposed to real life interaction. This definition implies that in a University language course students are thought to acquire proper grammatical and stylistic awareness. The premise is advanced that to achieve a set target University teacher-trainees should learn how to switch and shift registers and mix styles of communication. Accordingly, linguistic variations are viewed as contextually dependent: this means that they are determined by the conditions within which a communicative interaction takes place. The emphasis is placed on the idea that stylistic variations might be introduced yet at the initial stage of foreign language acquisition so that students are able to create stylistic fields, broaden or narrow them in accordance with connotative meanings of linguistic units, and synonymously vary them, following formal or informal conventions of spoken and written communication. The opinions of leading scholars are furnished regarding the need to acquire stylistic grammar, which is considered to be the highest level of foreign language proficiency. The idea is highlighted that developing stylistic competence is a gradual process, during which students must progress through definite stages of linguistic and communicative literacy and levels of grammar. With this in mind, a corresponding methodology is designed, which incorporates a system of stylistically oriented activities. They embrace non-communicative receptive, quasi-communicative receptive-reproductive and communicative productive exercises to be employed in the English classroom. The exercises are illustrated with relevant English examples. It is maintained that the employment of the proposed system of activities begins in the junior years and continues through the University course in order to obtain expected learning outcomes. Conclusion. Learners of English need to be sensitive to styles and social role registers so they could detect them and use them appropriately. To this end, University teacher-trainees are supposed to acquire stylistic competence, which will ensure not only their stylistic awareness but also booster their ability to produce stylistically and grammatically accurate utterances in accordance with a communicative context. Furthermore, it is important for teacher-trainees to be able to teach stylistic grammar to pupils in their future pedagogical career.