Pedagogical support for the activities of “Russian Language Open Education and Teaching Centres” in African countries (a case study of the Republic of Uganda)

Introduction. In connection with the strengthening and expansion of intercontinental cooperation in the sphere of economy, politics, culture and education, Russian Language Open Education and Teaching Centres have been opened in many African countries, which has actualised the need for developing the pedagogical support areas to promote the activities of these centres. Of particular importance in the context of trends in modern pedagogical doctrines is the integrated support of the Centre’s teachers and its students learning the Russian language and Russian culture at different levels. The aim of the work is to reveal the substance of the pedagogical support of the Centre’s activity and to test its effectiveness within the framework of teaching the Russian language and Russian culture in the Republic of Uganda. Methods. The research was carried out based on the Russian Language Open Education and Teaching Centre in the Republic of Uganda. A total of 16 teachers and 164 students took part in the experimental work. The methodology used in the survey involved observation method, questioning, test conversation, and different diagnostic methods (studying attractiveness factors of a profession, diagnostics of motives, verification of non-professional teachers’ knowledge of methodology, etc.). Pearson’s chi-squared test was used to test statistical hypotheses. KEYWORDS Results. The comparative analysis of the empirical data and statistical analysis made it possible to identify the positive dynamics and the indicators’ increased values by various criteria – cognitive, motivational and practical. The revealed data demonstrate an increase in the teachers’ experience level in the field of methodology for teaching Russian as a foreign language (χ2 = 4.800; p<0.05) as well as the students’ enriched knowledge of the Russian language and Russian culture (χ2 = 24.047; p=0.01). The Centre’s developed directions of pedagogical support have contributed to the effectiveness of teaching Russian as a foreign language outside the language environment. Conclusion. The developed pedagogical support programme for the Centre’s activities can be used in African countries that teach Russian language and Russian culture without immersion in the language environment. The work contributes to the theory and methodology of teaching Russian as a foreign language