Abstract:

It is well-known that educational process is tightly bound to the environment of the individual making the linguistic landscape an integral part of teaching and learning activity. This statement is particularly true for the urban territories of modern European countries. The paper examines the role of English as a communication agent of the educational process in two European cities: Berlin (Germany) and Kazan (the Republic of Tatarstan, Russian Federation). The subject of the analysis is the impact of the English language as an international communication agent on the development of the linguistic landscape and educational process in these cities.

Each of these capitals is a striking example of a multicultural densely populated city. The Republic of Tatarstan is twice-exceptional because two official languages - Russian and Tatar are carefully preserved on its territory. As globalization affects each European country, the role of English in building the linguistic landscape is becoming hard to overestimate. This is also reflected in the educational process. Berlin, Germany, is widely known for its multivalued immigration policy and, consequently, for its educational linguistic policy, both potent and diverse. A great number of immigrants in Berlin and migrants from the former USSR in Kazan as well as businesspeople, tourists, contracted workers and others visiting these capitals challenge both linguistic landscape and educational process in the two countries. The research seeked to analyse the influence of globalization on the linguistic landscape of these cities and its connection with the development of educational systems.

The findings of the authors demonstrated differences and similarities in the role of English as a communication agent of the educational process in these cities. This predominately comparative study made it possible to collect and critically analyze best practices of preservation and promotion the native language and culture in educational process in Germany and Russia to adopt them in Kazan, which aims to become an integral part of Europe.

Keywords:

Linguistic landscape, communication agent, educational process, globalization.