Development of Linguocultural Competence in Philology Students Based on Conceptual Approach

The paper focuses on development of linguoculturological competence in philology students. Linguoculturology is regarded as an interdisciplinary or 'interdiscipline' science with its focus on study of language through cultural and anthropological interpretation of linguistic facts. Linguoculturological competence is understood as a cultural values' body of knowledge acquired by a linguistic persona. The importance of conceptual approach for development of a value-based linguocultural identity in students is emphasized. The distinctive feature of the proposed approach is that it is based on the main trends in higher education, namely: expansion of language scope: not only an essential means of communication, but also a phenomenon of spiritual culture. The conceptual approach actualizes the notion of concept as a didactic unit of learning. Works of Russian researchers include a variety of definitions with regard to the following notions explaining a deeper layer of noosphere called concept: "notion", "genotype", "logoepistema", "linguocultureme", "sapientema", etc. Taking into account experience of operating with linguistic units reflecting ethnocultural values, we define a concept as a meaningful unit of consciousness functioning in a text, this unit being expressed in a language and having a stable network of associations relevant for bearers of the culture. Familiarization of a linguistic (cultural and linguistic) individual with spiritual values is done via a system of linguocultural concepts. Concept is regarded as interpreter of meaning, 'archiver of cultural meanings'. Interpretive analysis of concepts actualizes educational environment used to search for meaning. It is noted that cultural meanings represent the value content of culture. Accordingly, theory of cultural memory is actualized, which is effective in studying of the process of language conceptualization. A model of verbal and cogitative activity of students is presented, which includes a set of techniques allowing them to assimilate the meaning volume of the concept of patriotism taking into account contexts of different epochs. The conceptual approach integrates not only linguocultural knowledge, but also meaning-making, axiological components. Individual receives cultural experience, in which the aspect of meaning plays an important role. The paper defines criteria of linguoculturological competence of future professionals.


Introduction
In modern day conditions, the basis of professionally oriented education is the culturological paradigm. The term paradigm comes from Greek parádeigma, "example, sample". One of the meanings of the word relates to universally recognized scientific achievements that provide a community of professionals with a model of problem setting and solutions at a certain time. The issue of paradigm, as of a model of problem setting and a set of solution techniques, became live after the release of Kuhn's "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions." (2012). Thomas Kuhn was the first to consider a paradigm as a scientific community guided in its research by a body of knowledge and a certain approach to object of study (Lotman, 2005).
Nowadays, the term has become topical and highly usable in the domain of theoretical research: "general scientific methodological paradigm," "philosophical paradigm", "pedagogical paradigm, "anthropocentric paradigm", etc. We understand paradigm as a set of methodological rules adopted by the scientific pedagogical community, where the main value is individual, his/her moral stand, level of culture, professional competence. When a scientific paradigm is replaced by another one, as noted by Thomas Kuhn, model of problem setting and solutions change as well. The application scope of cultural paradigm in modern methodological science is yet to be clarified. Cultural approach has been recognized as dominant (macro-approach).
The cultural approach is a set of methodological techniques that enable analysis of any domain of human life and activity through the lens of systemic cultural concepts, such as culture, cultural images, norms and values, ways of life, individual and society (Krylova, 2000).

Purpose and objectives of the study
The purpose of this paper is to provide a rationale for the scientific and methodological content of the conceptual approach to teaching of philology students that shapes their linguoculturological competence.
Learning of a native language (and literature) is a phenomenon of students communicating with culture.
Hence, the result of learning is supposed to be formation of linguoculturological competence of a linguistic persona.
There are different concepts of individual in relation to culture. From a cultural standpoint individual takes on the following capacities: -culture product; -culture consumer; -culture producer; -culture translator; -culture agent.
While there exist various definitions, the essence of individual's actions and character manifests itself in cultural and linguistic processes (idea that can be traced back to W. von Humboldt's premise about people creating culture and language). The connection between language, culture and individual enables the statement that individual is an integrative concept, and that without individual there is no culture or language.

Methodology
Conceptual description of education content, activity approach modeling, conceptual modeling, association experiment, interpretive analysis.
In the XXI century, education faces the important task in creating "a person of culture" (Bibler, 1997). In this regard, it is important to identify approaches, mechanisms, methods, techniques of formation of linguoculturological competence of students in the process of their familiarization with the Russian world, which encompasses moral norms and spiritual values, peculiarities of mentality. Formation of a person of culture is preconditioned by the formation of this person's value consciousness. In modern science there are various definitions of consciousness of a person of culture: -dialogue consciousness (Bibler, 1997); -concept consciousness (Stepanov, 2001); -value consciousness (Kagan, 1996); -spiritual stratum of consciousness (Zinchenko, 2009); -linguocultural consciousness (Denisova, 2003;Karaulov, 1987) is a term that reveals the connection between the linguistic & mental complex and culture.
The solution to the problem of value consciousness formation may go different ways. We feel that the most practical of all is going in line with the conceptual approach being the optimal tool for transmitting culture through the lens of language.
The distinctive feature of the proposed approach is that it is based on the main trends in higher education, namely: • expansion of language scope: not only an essential means of communication, but also a phenomenon of spiritual culture; • acceptance of the fundamental principle "human in language" determined by the new anthropocentric paradigm.
The conceptual approach actualizes the notion of concept as a didactic unit of learning.
Taking into account experience of operating with linguistic units reflecting ethnocultural values, we define a concept as a meaningful unit of consciousness functioning in a text, this unit being expressed in a language and having a stable network of associations relevant for bearers of the culture.
We believe that familiarization of a linguistic individual with spiritual values is done via a system of linguocultural concepts (mercy, love, conscience, patriotism, nobility and other). Conceptual (interpretive) analysis actualizes educational environment used to search for meaning. In the course of learning (especially during intercultural interaction), students are constantly faced with the phenomenon of understanding meaning both when working with text and in communication. This hermeneutical component of the conceptual approach, based on which students solve the task of comprehending the miracle of understanding. Meanwhile, "the miracle consists not in souls mysteriously communicating with each other, but in their involvement with meanings common to both of them" (Stepanov, 2001). Being the highest form of humanitarian education, philology is seen by Averintsev (2004) as "the comprehension service that assists to fulfill one of the main human tasks -understanding of another person, epoch, text."

Discussiom
The terms "concept" and "meaning" are often perceived as synonyms. Apparently, this perception is preconditioned by works of Askoldov: "A concept encompasses points of most complex inflorescences of particularities of thoughts", which are, in essence, "inflorescences of meanings" (1997). Whereas the concept is close to culture and mental world, special attention must be paid to cultural meanings, which make an integral part of cultural semantics. Cultural meanings represent the value content of culture. In this context, it seems relevant to fall back upon the theory of cultural memory. The concept of cultural memory was developed in researches by Assman (2004) and Lotman (2005).
Assman highlighted four external dimensions of human memory: -mimetic memory (related to action); -objective memory (objective world, where humans live); -communicative memory (domain of language and communication); -cultural memory (conveyance of meaning) (Krylova, 2000).
Lotman views culture as collective memory. According to him, cultural memory is not just a repository of information. Memory content is an "active mechanism of the present", "meanings in the memory of a culture are not just stored, but grow". While reflecting on functioning of cultural memory, Lotman points out that oblivion ("so to speak") of information, texts does not occur. They do not disappear without a trace and can be "revived", become significant in the context of another era, because something gets into the cultural memory of a person only when it is of value for his/her people. According to Lotman, language signs show the highest concentration of cultural memory (2005).
By the term "memory of culture" Ivanov understands a set of various semiotic means capable of storing information (1999).
Chernosvitov interprets cultural memory as a domain of ideas and mentality. The cultural heritage of an epoch retains meanings invested in certain objects, artifacts, etc., and therefore is understandable to culture carriers in a certain community. The researcher refers "memes" -cultural meanings to units of storage of cultural memory (2009). It is worth noting that cultural memory encompasses two types of elements: A) ideal -cultural concepts; B) material -various sign vehicles of culture and language (verbal and non-verbal).
Based on researchers' ideas we conclude that the concept of cultural memory is effective in studying of the process of language conceptualization. Since cultural memory develops through accumulation of information, addition of meanings, the concept is a dynamic formation with information and meaning getting more complicated and increase in variety of material implementation. It can also be assumed that this process is infinite as are forms and shades of emotional experience, thinking about the world. Given that cultural meanings in the content of cultural memory are not lost, but transformed into potentiality and wait for a new actualization, it can be argued that cultural information can exist in real or potential (relevant/irrelevant) state inside a concept.
For illustration, we give a fragment of a class for studying the concept of patriotism.
The name of the concept is of a borrowed nature. According to the terminology proposed by Karasik, the concept is classified as "imported". Quite often such concepts are used in speech practice as a tribute paid to fashion, but this does not apply to the concept of patriotism, which has a powerful value potential in the Russian cultural space.
The purpose of the class is to determine key signs of the concept that serve as the basis for modelling of its value and meaning space, as well as to trace the transformation of culturally conditioned meanings taking into account contexts of different epochs.
For this end, interpretive conceptual analysis is used to identify the integrative essence of the concept. As a result, students develop their knowledge of the concept. This means, essentially, knowledge of the world expressed in certain linguistic units.
The model of verbal and cogitative activity of students includes a set of techniques, which allows them to assimilate the meaning volume of the concept: 1. Etymological analysis, establishing the inner form of the word as the "grain of primal meaning". The term "patriot" first used by Peter the Great. Late borrowing via German patroit or borrowed directly from French patriote ("Fatherland's son"), from Latin patriōta, Greek πατριώτης ("of the same country").
2. Establishing the lexical meaning of the word as the actualizer of the concept.
Dal: Fatherland -native land, place of birth or growing up; root, land of a people, to whom a person belongs by birth, language and faith; a state in relation to its subjects; homeland in a broad sense (Wierzbicka, 1996).
The Dictionary of the Russian Language (Ozhegov, 2008): Loyalty and love for one's fatherland, people, and readiness for any sacrifice or feat in the interests of one's motherland.
The Great Academic Dictionary of the Russian Language defines patriotism as love for one's fatherland, loyalty to your people, readiness for any sacrifice or feat in the interests of one's homeland. Another shade of meaning: loyalty to anything, love for smth. (own work, homeland), there is also a fixed collocation "kvass patriotism" used ironically, which means commitment to small things of Russian national life (traditional Russian clothes, cuisine, etc.) True love for one's motherland may get replaced by unconditional extolment for outdated norms of life. It has nothing to do with sincere, true love for motherland. For instance, Vyazemsky, in his "Letters from Paris" (1827), uses the phrase "kvass patriotism" as a synonym of the French expression "patriotism d'antichambre." The Small Academic Dictionary largely reproduces the interpretation aspects in the Great Academic Dictionary ("patriotism -love for one's homeland, loyalty to one's fatherland, people") (Yevgenyeva, 1981(Yevgenyeva, -1984. The New Explanatory Dictionary of Word Structure in the Russian Language by Yefremova (2000) contains one more meaning marked with the abbreviation "coll.". Devotion to smth.; Passionate love for smth.
Explanatory dictionary: Language of the Newspaper, Radio, Television provides a similar meaning marked with the abbreviation " fig.". A patriot is someone, who is devoted to smth., passionately loves smth. (a patriot of his town) (Solganik, 2002).
F. Brockhaus and I. Ephron interpret patriotism as love for fatherland arising from the feeling of solidarity with interests of other citizens of the state or members of the nation.

Semantic relations with other words in the Russian conceptual framework. Patriotism -Fatherland -
Homeland -Native land -Heroic act -Citizen of the world -Loyalty -Love.
5. Combinatory properties. A real patriot, sacred feeling, duty, allegiance, love not through words, but through action, moderate patriotism.
9. Associative and verbal image of the patriotism concept.
As a result of work done and through solving of hermeneutic problems students revealed culturally conditioned meanings of the concept and means of their expression.
The students came to the conclusion that description of the patriotism concept is based on the source language (Greek or Latin), on "the tradition of using equivalent words with this root in Western languages <... >, some elements of the conceptual content of the concept of patriotism that occurred in the source language can interact with new elements of meaning, which arise when the concept is utilized by Russian linguistic consciousness" (Vasmer, 1996).
With regard to the conceptual framework of the Russian world, this concept is a key one, as the semantic field of the concept includes spiritual and moral values. The scope of meaning of the concept includes various cognitive attributes, while the most significant of them are "love for the homeland, Motherland".
The lexeme "otechestvo" (fatherland) has been identified as having special meaning (cf. English "country": "a person, who loves his country and supports its interests", defends it from enemies or "a person who vigorously supports their country and is prepared to defend it against enemies or detractors") (Kolesov, 2006). A patriot is a son of the Motherland (Vasmer, 1996). Dal (2000) believed that a patriot is a lover of the fatherland, devotee of its benefit, lover of homeland. The fatherland is part of the arsenal of the spiritual code of culture. For example, A.S. Pushkin 's poem "October 19" reveals the sacred meaning: "we're aliens in the whole world, the Tsar's village is our Fatherland." Dal (2000) believed that fatherland traces back to the word "father". The religious discourse includes the phrase "spiritual father" and the concept of "heavenly fatherland." Accordingly, fatherland is perceived as the spiritual homeland for all Christians and this is consistent with the idea of collegiality (Christ in everyone). According to the dictionary of Dal (Mayakovsky). A new shade of meaning was bornideal socialist fatherland. According to dictionaries, since the middle of the 20th century, the word motherland has dominated, which is synonymous with the word fatherland (Karaulov, 1987).
In the Soviet era, the word patriotism started being used in a new meaningful context: genuine patriotism that means love for one's motherland, allegiance to one's fatherland, loyalty to the ideals of socialism and communism. Genuine patriotism is incompatible with cosmopolitanism. Cosmopolitanism in this era is antonymic to patriotism.
The concept of cosmopolitanism has been assessed in terms of cultural memory: in different discourses, in contexts of different epochs. The term was first used by the philosopher Diogenes in the 3rd century BC in this dialogue: -First of all, my good friend, where are you from? -Everywhere.
-What do you mean?
-You're looking at a citizen of the world.
Dal interprets cosmopolitanism as being a "world citizen". That is a person who does not recognize any special relationship with his/her motherland, immigrant (2009).
In his works, Pushkin construed the words patriot and cosmopolitan as antonyms. In his novel in verse "Eugene Onegin", the author shows his hero, who returned from a journey, where he "stalked" similar "drawing-rooms" he once had left, but everyone wonders about his newly acquired appearance, a mask he'd be wearing: "For what charade is he apparelled?
Is he a Melmoth, a Childe Harold, a patriot, a cosmopolite, bigot or prude?" An interesting interpretation is given in the Soviet Encyclopedia Dictionary (1980)

Results
In order to identify the meaning scope of the concept and its representation in the linguistic consciousness of young people, an associative experiment was carried out among students of Nizhny Novgorod State Linguistic University (100 participants).

Great Patriotic War
The Motherland calls The prolonged sense in relation to the homeland is that one of love, pride, faith, often connected with moral and ethical obligations (allegiance, devotion, duty), love for Russia. The combination of love for the motherland and responsibility for it is dominant.
The key reaction word is "podvig", the Russian for a feat, heroic act. An interesting observation on the distinction between the meanings of the concepts of valor, heroism, feat were provided by Russian artist Roerikh (1987): "Heroism rung in by fanfare is unable to convey the immortal, all-true thought vested in the Russian word "podvig ". "Heroic act" is not exactly the thing; "valor" does not exhaust the meaning of it; "self-denial" -again not quite it; "improvement" -has a very different meaning because it implies some completion, whereas "podvig" is limitless. "Podvig" creates and accumulates good, makes life better, develops humanism. No wonder the Russian people created this bright, this sublime concept. A person, who performs a "podvig" takes on this burden and carries it voluntarily. In this readiness of his there is no shadow of selfishness, there is only love for his fellowman, for whom the hero fights in all his arduous journeys" (Roerikh, 1987).
Thus, a positive perception of the concept of patriotism has been confirmed. People must have this emotional and moral feeling, it is necessary for everyone. Patriotism and homeland -these two constants are connected and interdependent in the association and verbal network of language consciousness. It is noteworthy that in the era of globalization the concept of a citizen of the world has been actualized. A modern man keeps connection both with his homeland and with the whole world. The question is raised and made global about the discovery of Motherland in the universe, where "it blooms in her own way and wonderful glory" (Karel Čapek), vested with her own blessed destiny and her own purpose distinct from others.
The associative experiment complements the conceptual analysis. The two approaches to one concept provide in their "hermeneutic dialogue" a deep idea of the way it exists in the consciousness of cultural and linguistic individual.
The conceptual approach integrates not only linguocultural knowledge, but also meaning-making, axiological components. Individual receives cultural experience, in which the aspect of meaning plays an important role.
Development of linguoculturological competence takes place not only when a student receives information, but when he/she relates own cultural norms and values to it. This experience of relation is a necessary component of linguoculturological competence.
The criteria for development of linguoculturological competence are as follows: awareness of internal form, associative aura that accompanies the concept, use and identification of precedent texts, understanding of the evaluative aspect of the lexical meaning of a word, analysis of contexts of uses, including uses in different epochs.
The techniques of understanding concepts of the Russian world contribute to solving the following pressing tasks in training of philology students: -formation of a cultural and linguistic identity; -birth of a conceptualized value consciousness; -actualization of cultural components in the cultural content of philological education (humanitarization); -perception of being educated as a valued attribute of an individual; -moral and spiritual development of an individual capable of successful socialization and creative selfrealization in modern society; -raising the status of philological knowledge.