The Importance of Developing Foreign Language Competences for Military Cadets ; Kariūnų užsienio kalbų kompetencijų ugdymo svarba

Abstract

Foreign language competences for the military personnel of Lithuania and NATO are essential in sustaining National Security of the alliance especially by effectively performing their military duties that include not only specific military art but also administrative and managemental. The Military Academy of Lithuania is a unique higher educational institution that prepares specialists in administration, management, and other fields. Therefore, being a cadet of the Academy, he/she acquires all the necessary competences to obtain proficiency in these fields. However, the cadets of the Academy considerably need foreign language competences so that they could actively, successfully, and professionally conduct their duties not only locally but also participating internationally in various military organizations and missions. Thus, in many cases military's success in multinational operations very often depends on soldiers' ability to communicate and express themselves in English or any other foreign language. In this "global village" it is practically inconceivable to make career without the knowledge of the English or any other foreign language. Thus, the aim of the research is to analyze the role of foreign language competencies acquired at the Lithuanian Military Academy where cadets obtain qualifications and foreign language competences needed for successful career making, National and International security. Therefore, the objective of the research is how theoretically and practically resolve the issue of developing new linguistic competences in foreign languages necessary for MAL cadets through analyses of the results of the questionnaire.