Abstract:

The article explores the experience of teaching Malagasy students the Russian language and theoretical disciplines in Russian at RUDN University (Moscow, Russia). Being an international institution of higher education, RUDN University pays particular attention to teaching foreign students focusing on their national identity and cultural peculiarities. The authors put forward a thesis that greater efficiency and better results are achieved when working and evaluating in groups, which is largely determined by the peculiarity of the world outlook of the Malagasy.

The specificity of the worldview by the Malagasy is considered on the example of the cultural concept Fihavanana ‘social fraternity’ and the Malagasy paroemiae. The cultural concept involves collective meaningful mental formations that record the uniqueness of the culture under consideration, which is closely related to linguistic consciousness, communicative behavior, and discourse.

Fihavanana, one of the characteristics of Malagasy society was originated in the early Malagasy ideology and had a great influence not only on the mentality of the people, but also on the life of Malagasy society. In Madagascar, Fihavanana remains a hot topic, it is comparable to the concepts of several European philosophers, such as J. Simmel, J. Lacan and E. Durkheim, and relates to the level of cultural and moral values of society. Fihavanana can be described as a combination of the concept of friendship, solidarity and readiness for help; a system of rules, norms and customs that organizes Malagasy society; as a marker of belonging to a social group, and also as a sign of tolerance, justice, and harmony in the world.

The scientific novelty of the research consists in the fact that the paroemiae of the Malagasy language and their translation in a comparative aspect are described for the first time. The practical value of the study is implemented through the recommendations for teaching the Russian language to Malagasy students (particularly, in a university) proposed by the authors.

The results of the research are proved by a poll in which 20 Malagasy students took part, which contributed to increasing the efficiency of educational activities with Malagasy students and their development in the cultural environment of a foreign university.

Keywords:

Cultural component in learning, cultural concept, Malagasy language, paroemia, Fihavanana.