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The article provides a study of the components of gender neutrality, which are reflected in textbooks on the English language. As an aspect of political correctness, the concept of gender neutrality in English began to develop in the second half of the last century, and, as a result, various national and international organisations began to issue guidelines on the use of gender-neutral language. The focus of these guidelines is mainly on the use of gender-neutral grammatical and lexical strategies, as well as avoiding the use of gender stereotypes. Foreign researchers in the field of TESOL consider that teachers of English should not only use these strategies in the classroom, but also analyse the materials used in the classroom according to the aforementioned criteria, as well as pay attention to the equal representation of male and female characters, personalities and case names. The article analyses 10 text-books on the English language compiled by Russian and foreign authors for their compliance with the criteria of gender neutrality. In conclusion, the article presents the results of the content analysis and concludes that it is possible to make special recommendations for authors-compilers of English-language educational literature, which would take into account some aspects of gender neutrality.

The article studies the issues of developing special competencies necessary for working with digital libraries among undergraduate and graduate students in the field of “Cultural Studies”. In the context of digitalization of the Russian educational and cultural space, the question arises of developing appropriate competencies in students — future specialists in the field of cultural heritage representation. An analysis of the national project “Culture” showed that one of the most important and pressing tasks is the digitization and replenishment of electronic libraries. However, in addition to working with digital copies of cultural heritage objects, modern specialists must be ready to work with those objects that are initially digital in nature. In this regard, the creation of new formats for systematization and reconstruction of information about cultural objects becomes relevant. The most popular tool for this are digital libraries, working with which it is impossible to do without supplementing professional competencies with components of ICT competence. In addition, ICT competence, developed through interaction with digital libraries, helps to implement personal projects to create one’s own knowledge base. In conclusion, it is advisable to include ICT competence as an independent competence in the list of professional competencies as well as develop a course aimed at forming the components of this competence necessary for working with digital libraries.