In the didactics of higher education, the issue of professional thinking development (so-called
pedagogical thinking) for students majoring in pedagogics remains insufficiently studied. At the
same time, pedagogical thinking, and the methods of its development and diagnostics can provide
clear guidelines for teaching individualization and correction mechanisms. These methods should
focus on fostering the professional qualities for future teachers.
The purpose of the article is to describe the proprietary technology for diagnosing the level of students’
pedagogical thinking – future preschool teachers – using the group expert assessment method.
Research methods and techniques. The study was carried out through a competency-based approach,
which coordinates the competence-oriented goals of future teachers’ professional training with the
level of their pedagogical thinking. The method of the group expert assessment was used to justify
the structure, content, and students’ pedagogical thinking levels. We involved qualified university
instructors and pre-school teachers as experts.
Findings. We determined the basic structure of pedagogical thinking and its development levels for
these students. This helped to define the choice of teaching aids and targeted assistance to students
within individual educational pathways. The article shows the interrelation of components and
interdependence of the pedagogical thinking for students with the structural components of the
professional and pedagogical competence for a bachelor degree student.
The novelty of the research. The authors propose a methodology for diagnosing the development
level of students’ pedagogical thinking which is coordinated with the competence-oriented goals
of their professional training. The federal-state educational standard of higher education and the
Professional standard “Teacher (pedagogical activity in the field of preschool, primary, basic and
secondary education)” determines the content of these goals.
Practical significance. The findings of the research can be applied by administrative authorities and
university instructors for planning individual educational pathways of undergraduate students, as
well as of post-graduate students studying the current issues of preschool education.
Author : Yuri A. Shikhov
Academic expertise for the structure and content of professional competences for future preschool teachers
The Federal State Educational Standard for a new generation (FSES of HE 3++) sets out universal
and general professional competences for university graduates. Educational structures can define
professional competences independently and describe them as professional standards. A means
of solving this challenge is to use a group of assessment experts – one of the core academic
qualitative methods. This collective expert opinion helps to develop an algorithm for pedagogical
competence expertise and for generalizing their quantitative representation and content. The article
presents methods for the structure and content of professional competences for undergraduate
students majoring in preschool education. These include the group expert assessment method
and the procedure for reconciling the determined competences with current legal documents for
preschool education. The research focused on competence-based and qualimetric approaches aimed
at modeling the outcomes of education. The “framework” sets out the structure of competences
that act as the professional quality standards for higher education. The group expert assessment
made it possible to identify groups of professional competences and elaborate their content.
The authors have determined the academic expertise for the structure and content of professional
competences for students who are the future preschool teachers. This involved the examination and
harmonization of the requirements of the Professional Standards for “Teachers (teaching practice
in the field of preschool, primary, lower secondary, upper secondary education) (a pre-school
teacher, a teacher),” and the Federal State Educational Standard for preschool education. These
stages can be implemented in developing the structure and content of professional competencies
for students majoring in other areas and profiles of training, which adds to their practical value and
usefulness. The findings can be used by university instructors to identify and develop professional
competences for undergraduate students following their future job functions and actions as outlined
by professional standards.