History of the School of Foreign Languages

The School of Foreign Languages has been training specialists in foreign languages for more than 80 years. It was founded on the basis of the division of foreign languages and literature of Taras Shevchenko Kyiv State University as Ukrainian Institute of Linguistic Education in 1930.

In 1934 the Institute was transferred from Kyiv to Kharkiv and in 1935 it was named Kharkiv Pedagogical Institute of Foreign Languages with three schools (School of German Language, School of English Language and School of French Language). Then the Institute trained both teachers and translators at the special translation division.

In 1937 Kharkiv Pedagogical Institute of Foreign Languages opened a distance-learning department majoring in the aforementioned specialties. The same year the Institute opened its postgraduate course. In 1941 the Institute was named after N. K. Krupska.

When the Great Patriotic War broke out, the Institute was evacuated to Marks City in Saratov oblast, where the Institute continued its work.

In 1956 the full-time learning division of the Institute launched programs for training general teachers, namely preparing teachers of German and boarding school tutors at the School of German Language, and teachers of English and Ukrainian Languages and Literature and teachers of French and Ukrainian Languages and Literature at the School of English and French Languages. Due to the introduction of the second profile (major) the Institute has switched to the five-year term of study.

In 1959 new curricula were introduced according to which the second major — teacher of Ukrainian language and Literature — at the Schools of English and French Languages was substituted by the major of a boarding school tutor, i.e. the second major becomes uniform for all the Schools.

At different times the Institute employed famous scientists and cultural figures and men of science: Academicians M.T. Rylskyi and L.A. Bulakhovskyi, famous psychologist, ProfessorP.I. Zinchenko, outstanding specialist in Slavic Languages, Professor Z.M. Veselovska, Head of the Department of Russian Language and General Linguistics, ProfessorO.M. Finkel, one of the first researchers of Ukrainian phraseology compared to English phraseology, author of the first English-Ukrainian phraseological dictionary, Professor K.T. Barantsev, researchers of grammar structure of the English language, Associate ProfessorsB.I. Rohovska and B.S. Khaimovych, one of the first researchers of German-Ukrainian parallels in grammar, Associate Professor O.S. Drachuk, researcher of Ukrainan-French equivalents, Associate Professor Ye.P. Martianova and many other contributors to the history of the School development.

Kharkiv Pedagogical Institute of Foreign Languages existed till June, 1960, i.e. till it was transferred to be part of Kharkiv State University as the School of Foresign Languages.

In 1960 the School comprised three graduating departments: the Department of English Philology, the Department of German Philology and the Department of French Philology. After a number of structural changes introduced at the School of Foreign Languages over years todat the School has eight departments, four of them graduating: the Department of English Philology, the Department of German Philology and Translation, the Department of Romance Philology and Translation, the Department of English Translation Theory and Practice, and four of them being general: the Department of Foreign Language Teaching Methods and Practice, the Department of English Language, the Department of German and French Languages, the Department of Business Foreign Language and Translation.

A new level of professional training is achieved due to the realization in 1997 of the Multimedia Center profect. The whole complex of computer equipment installed within the project integrates the possibilities of a language laboratory and those of a video and audio classes. For the purposes of automation of the educational process management the Dean's Office and all the Departments are equipped with PCs connected to the local network and printes. Since 1998 the School has been connected to the global Internet network.

The German Language Information Center was founded at the School to extend the knowledge about the coutries whose languages are taught, establish international relations and provide up-to-date information on possibilities of undergoing training abroad.

New generation scholars of the School of Foreign Languages of V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University are contributing to the glorious history of Kharkiv linguistic school.