Rhetorical training in higher education as the basis of professional speech practice of a lawyer

Abstract

The article examines the speech competencies formed in practical classes in the disciplines “Rhetoric for lawyers” and “Legal rhetoric in the activities of a lawyer”: communicative, textual, lexical and orthological. The article is based on the methodological understanding of rhetoric as an academic discipline that improves the speech-thinking activity of students in the direction of training “jurisprudence”. This is expressed in the ability to create professionally meaningful texts, replenishment of vocabulary in accordance with professional and intellectual needs, solving communication problems at various levels. The author of the article believes that the successful professional speech practice of a lawyer, which requires well-formed communication skills, is due, inter alia, to linguistic training at a university. The purpose of the disciplines of the humanitarian cycle is to form the rhetorical skills of students, necessary to create eff ective argumentation, the ability to speak in public and influence the persuasion of listeners; updating the writing skills of a future lawyer. The author identifi es a number of issues that are most signifi cant in teaching rhetoric, such as the formation of language competence, including communicative, textual, orthological aspects and teaching methods. The latter are based on general didactic teaching methods. Taking into account the specifi cs of training in a law school, the most eff ective is a student-centered approach to learning, namely: methods of explanation, practice, self-esteem, control and self-control. The author describes an example of a lesson methodology aimed at developing the above competencies.