How can we prepare future foreign language teachers to thrive in a rapidly changing digital world? How do innovation, technology, and pedagogy intersect in shaping their professional identity? These questions were at the heart of a round table discussion “Shaping the Professional Identity of a Foreign Language Teacher Through the Lens of Innovative Educational Technologies”, held on 23 September 2025 by the Department of Intercultural Communication and Foreign Language Education at the Educational and Scientific Institute of Foreign Philology at Zhytomyr Ivan Franko State University.
The event brought together heads of methodological commissions and teachers of English, German, and French from Zhytomyr lyceums as well as the Scientific Lyceum of Zhytomyr Ivan Franko State University, and the Korostyshiv Ivan Franko Pedagogical Vocational College.
The round table opened with a welcome speech by Vice-Rector for Research and International Affairs Viktoriia Zhukovska, who presented the DigiFLEd project, implemented with the support of the European Union under the Erasmus+ programme, and emphasised that high-quality foreign language education today is impossible without the integration of digital tools.
Director of the Institute of Foreign Philology, Maryna Polkhovska, presented the first results of the DigiFLEd project and introduced the Digital Language Hub – a virtual centre and digital platform designed for experience exchange, innovative course development, and professional growth of foreign language teachers.
The programme of the round table featured a variety of workshops and presentations:
A presentation of the pilot academic profile of Lyceum No. 12 by Oleksandr Holiachenko, Director of the Lyceum;
A joint workshop “Modern Methodological Guidelines for Teaching Foreign Languages in Ukraine in the 2025–2026 Academic Year” by Larysa Kalinina, PhD, Professor, and Tetiana Hryhorieva, PhD, Associate Professor of the Department of Intercultural Communication and Foreign Language Education;
A workshop “Enhancing Learners’ Communicative Competence by Means of Silent Cartoon” by Nataliia Prokopchuk, PhD, Associate Professor of the same department;
A creative writing workshop “Unlock the Storyteller” by Yuliia Klymovych, PhD, Senior Lecturer;
A workshop for teachers of German “Linguodidactic Potential of Authentic Video Materials for Developing Intercultural Competence (on the Example of German Language Teaching)” moderated by Iryna Svyrydenko, PhD, Associate Professor of the Department of German Philology and World Literature;
A workshop “New Approaches to Teaching French During Wartime” moderated by Yuliia Lisova, PhD, Associate Professor of the Department of Intercultural Communication and Foreign Language Education.
All participants agreed that methodological training, digital literacy, and communicative competence are essential components in shaping the professional identity of the modern foreign language teacher.
The future of education is already here – interactive, innovative, and inspiring!