Abstract:

The study maps the current challenges in the field of methodological support for primary school teachers in foreign language teaching to pupils aged 6-11 years. The research sample consisted of 374 Slovak foreign language teachers in primary education. The respondents' statements were obtained through a self-constructed questionnaire. The findings of the qualitatively oriented research showed a significant differentiation in the perception of the most serious challenges in the following areas: methodology of foreign language teaching in heterogeneous groups of pupils of younger school age, reflecting on problematic areas by parents and pupils, prioritization of teaching objectives and developing a positive attitude of pupils towards foreign language learning. The results of the analysis represent one of the key starting points for the design of methodological online support - a web portal of foreign language teaching for the target group of teachers, potentially parents of pupils in Slovakia, which is created within the KEGA project No. 011UMB4/2022 "Creation of a web portal of methodological support of foreign language teaching in primary education".

Keywords:

Primary education, foreign language teaching, heterogeneous groups, methodological support.