The Double Role of Foreign Languages Teachers

AbstractThe knowledge of phenomena that allow the assimilation of a foreign language determines the grasping of the specific features of that language as well as certain common characteristics of all languages. The individuals who learn a foreign language find support in what they have already acquired while learning their mother tongue or other foreign languages with a view to deeply understanding that specific newly approached language. Nevertheless, the linguistic competence of those who learn a foreign language also depends, to a large extent, on the double role teachers are willing to assume within the educational process: one of them requires their guiding and organizing capacity acquired owing to special professional training while the other demands their ability of communicating, interfering, and dialoguing with third parties. The guiding and organizing teacher is the one who defines and implements methodology, and evaluates the progress of those who learn a foreign language. On the other hand, as an interlocutor, the teacher should be capable to facilitate dialogue, to provide ‘language authenticity’, to determine vocabulary enrichment, and inter-cultural exchanges. The double role of foreign language teachers appears to improve the teaching process of a foreign language as well as performance in the field