The living word: The key to dialogue and mutual understanding (to the 100th anniversary of the birth of Professor T. A. Ladyzhenskaya)

The article characterises the scientific legacy of Professor T.A. Ladyzhenskaya (5 April 1925– 22 November 2017), an outstanding Russian methodologist, doctor of pedagogical sciences, professor. She authored school and university textbooks, founded the Department of Rhetoric and Culture of Speech at Moscow State Pedagogical University (MGPI), headed the "Communication Rhetoric" school of thought. The study used such theoretical research methods as analysis and contrastive analysis of scientific literature on Russian language teaching methodology and speech development methodology. The article examines the major aspects of the methodology developed by T. A. Ladyzhenskaya to enhance students’ oral speech, as well as to teach essay writing. Additionally, we emphasize the systematicity and consistency principle as the conceptual foundation for the formation of the communicative and speech skills in students. The article reveals the fundamental principles of the school and university rhetoric course developed by T. A. Ladyzhenskaya. She understood rhetoric as linguistics of speech. In this study, we highlight the axiological aspect of rhetoric, its educational potential and characterise the moral and rhetorical ideas that form the basis of the rhetoric course. The article emphasises the relevance of T. A. Ladyzhenskaya’s methodological legacy for meeting the challenges Russian language teachers face nowadays.