Using Cognitive Visualization Techniques in Teaching Foreign Languages

The paper deals with the concept of “cognitive visualization” as a mental visualization of the text with its subsequent rendering in graphic forms. The concepts of cognitive visualization and illustrativeness are distinguished. The definition of cognitive visualization is similar to the principle of illustrativeness in teaching, but it has the advantage of being a way developing students’ thinking. The paper identifies the main characteristics of cognitive visualization, such as concentration and generalization of knowledge. Various methods of cognitive visualization help systematize large amounts of information. The main techniques of cognitive visualization are: mind maps, comics, a diagram “Heaven and Hell”, a bridge of negotiations, infographics, Metro map, bar charts, scribing, dilemma diagrams, spray diagrams. The methodological model aimed at developing students ' skills of extracting information from texts of any type using effective methods of cognitive visualization consists of such components as motif-based, informative (based on the unity of linguistic, psychological and methodological components), methodological (teaching to work with texts based on cognitive visualization techniques) and resultative (getting a product).