The article deals with the comparison of Russian and foreign perception of teacher roles (the name traditionally accepted in foreign science) and functions (as they are called in Russian pedagogy). It describes and analyses similarities and differences of these two approaches. The results of the analysis are presented in the table and the following discussion, which reveals the scarcity and more general nature of functions in Russian methodology and the necessity of the new approach that will make it possible to use humanistic ideas of communicative approach in the classroom more effectively. The functional contradiction regarding the non-functionality of the functional approach has been revealed and is discussed. The article also describes the transitional challenges Russian teachers are facing trying to adopt the non-typical roles of ‘facilitator of learning’. One of the most pressing issues is the post-Soviet legacy of Grammar-Translation approach, in which the teacher was accounted the ultimate resource of information and the ultimate authority in the classroom.