| dc.description.abstract | The Global Scale of English (GSE) is standardized, granular scale which measures English language proficiency as well as education progress accurately and easily. Lately it became very popular and demanded in linguistics. The Global Scale of English was launched by Pearson, which is the world’s leading learning company. The same as this system works for English it may be applied for Russian language learning or for any other foreign languages. In spite of the fact that English and Russian are very different in a lot of important language aspects, they still have similarities on many topics. It is expected that, the development of such mechanism of perception wıll make Russian learning easier both for students and for teacher. The purpose of this research aims to apply GSE to the Russian language and based on GSE to develop The Global Scale of Russian. By means of this system, it is planned to change measurement and scoring system for each level of the Russian language education. This means that language proficiency will no longer need to be measured in vague terms like basic, intermediate or advanced. It will enable Russian learners to score their language skills on a granular, numeric scale from. In other words the system will provide more detailed picture of Russian language performance at different levels of proficiency as well as will help to find more efficient teaching methods. In this context, the same like in GSE, evaluation will be divided into 4 parts: listening, speaking, writing and reading. The Global Scale or Russian will be a very good tool for Russian language education.Russian is one of the mostly spoken languages in the world. The importance of Russian language can be understood by looking at the vast region where it is spoken. In addition, teaching Russian as a foreign language is of utmost importance both in Turkey and in other countries in terms of improving international relationships. In Turkey, the demand to learn Russian is increasing day by day due to the thriving economical, political and commercial relationships between Turkey and Russia. Correspondingly, new private institutions to teach Russian and Russian Culture and Literature departments at universities are being founded in Turkey. When the backgorund of Russian Culture and Literature departments in Turkey was reviewed, it is seen that the first Russian Culture and Literature Department was founded in 1936 in Ankara University, Faculty of Languages, Geography.and History thanks to the initiative of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (Aktay, 2015: 128). In 1990, after the revolution in Russia, the relations between two countries started to develop and after Russian Literature, Turkish people also became interested in Russian language, which paved the way for founding Russian Language and Literature Departments in Turkish universities: İstanbul University (1990), Selçuk University(1992), Erciyes University( (1993), Gazi University(1995), Fatih University(1996), Kafkas University( (2004), Anadolu University(2010). Okan University founded the Department of Russian Translation and Interpreting in 2004. In addition, in many universities in Turkey Russian is taught as a second language. In 2005-2006 academic year, Russian became the medium of instruction in vacational high schools for the first time (Aykut, 2006: 23). 2. The Purpose of the Study The issue of how to teach Russian as a foreign language is a common matter of discussion just like the issue of how to teach other languages. While teaching Russian, a lot of different methods including translation, auditory and visual methods are employed. In fact, foreign language teaching methods are not the methods to teach or learn a language, but the methods to provide the learner with the skills and learning strategies to become more competent learners. In language teaching, the method is an educational component which provides students to accomplish the outcomes in a quick and reliable way. Although there are several language teaching methods developed until today, it is impossible to mention a certain method that is ideal and totally sufficient. The variety in language teaching methods brings about the problem to decide which method is the most efficient one. A method which can be fully efficient for a person may not be efficient for another one or it may be totally useless. In foreign language teaching, a method determines the theoratical basics of instruction. Therefore, it is essential to have an in-depth knowledge of the basics, limitations and application of a method. (Memiş, Erdem, 2013: 298-299) As is known to all, language ability is an innate physiological ability and it determines an individual’s future experiences. Language ability serves as a bridge connecting the real world and an individual’s mind. The development of language ability of an individual depends on physiological, psychological, social, cultural, economical and individual factors such as gender, age and intelligence. (Şengül, 2009). This is why science gets in search of new systems for language ability development. Inspired from this point of view, in this study, it is aimed to bring a new perspective to GSE ( Global Scale of English) language scale, which is the the first truly global English language standard, allowing teachers to more accurately and easily measure learner progress, by using GSE ( Global Sclae of English) and CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference: Learning, Teaching, Assessment). GSE ( Global Scale English) is a testing and assesment scale developed by a leading educational company Pearson. The purpose of designing this scale is to adapt the English version for teaching Russian language and by this way to convert the information into numbers in order to have a standard viewpoint and an opportunity to find new ways in teaching Russian. In this study, Global Scale of Russian is examined in terms of teaching and development. 3. The Method of the Study In this study, in order to determine the language level, DIALANG assesment system is examined in the first place. DIALANG assesment system is used to determine the language level of the learner in any stage of the learning process. The detailed information related to DIALANG assessment system can be found in official CEFR document (attachment 226-243). As this systes is able to test the vocabulary knowledge in all levels, it also contributes the learners to improve their language ability. DIALANG assessment system is chosen since it is also preferred by many institutions in Europe as well. CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference: Learning, Teaching, Assessment) uses different categories to describe systematic proficiency levels of language learners. The scale consists of three levels (A, B and C) to evaluate grammatical competence. Each level is divided into two and there are six levels in total named as A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2. Although, the levels are scaled similarly, it requires different processes to reach each level. For instance, it can take the same duration to reach A2 level from A1 or C2 level from C1 according to DIALANG. However, passing C2 level from C1 requires far more time when compared to passing A2 from A1. Pearson worked on this scale and by developing GSE ( Global Scale of English), they aimed to solve this problem. Thanks to GSE, English learners are able to see their level and the requirements to move on to the next level. It is aimed to adapt this scale developed by Pearson for Russian learners. On the other hand, GSE ( Global Scale of English) consists of five levels as follows : Elementary, Pre-intermediate, Intermediate, Upperintermediate ve Advanced. CEFR and GSE are not really different from each other and they have a lot in common. Globa Scale ?f English (GSE) use a scale ranging from 10 (lowest level) to 90(highest level). 4. The Findings of the Study According to the information given in the introduction and methods of study sections, it is possible to develop Global Scale of Russian (GSR), a scale for Russian learners, by examining the development of GSE, using their system, looking into application methods and meeting the requirements for every single outcome of the scale. Although Russian and English are different languages in terms of grammar, syntax, phonetics and morphology, it is also possible to find common aspects by examining the level and the criteria in GSE in detail. In this study, there are examples given at A1 Level Russian by using Global Scale of Russian. By using Russian proficiency exams such as TRKI and TORFL and considering the structure and characteristics of Russian language and the feedback from Russian language instructors, it is possible to prepare tables of specifications for each level for Russian in GSE format and use the data gathered to teach Russian as a foreign language. The scale aimed to be prepared in this study is named as GSR ( Global Scale of Russian) by considering GSE ( Global Scale of English).During USSR period, language levels used to be determined by only looking at two variables : grammatical&lexical competence and fluency. However, today, there are many factors in determining the language level such as grammatical competence, lexical competence, writing competence and speaking competence. This new perspective which is used in many European countries draws attention and it is innovative. Thanks to new methods and the system, teaching a foreign language has become more systematic. Based on all the things mentioned in this study, it is concluded that CEFR is a way of keeping track of individual’s language improvement and personal data. Apart from these, CEFR may also include information related to cultural differences. In conclusion, in this study the potential to develop a global scale to facilitate learning is examined. This study is conducted based on a scale design for English teaching. It is possible to develop a special project and form a professional team of experts to develop a scale for Russian language. Global scale approach in teaching Russian language is an innovative method to find solutions to linguistic problems, to have visual methods and to rely on while determining the language level of Russian learners | en_US |
