THE PRACTICE OF IMPLEMENTING THE COMPETENCY APPROACH IN EDUCATIONAL SYSTEMS OF DEVELOPED COUNTRIES

Abstract

Summary. The article is considered and analyzed practical steps to implement the competency approach in national educational systems of developed countries. The author emphasizes that competency approach is one of the leading areas of education systems improvement in the world, and its implementation by many international organizations is proclaimed the main benchmark for changes in modern education. Considered the stages of formation and development of competency approach in the education of EU, USA and Canada, the reasons for transition from knowledge educational model to competency. Such a model establishes that the key is not a system of student knowledge, skills and abilities, but an ability to apply them in different situations of life, that is, the main educational result is an acquisition of key competencies in different areas of activity. The process of formation of terms «competency» and «key competencies» in foreign pedagogical science is covered. Revealed that in developed countries, in particular in EU countries, the implementation of competency approach to the content of general secondary education is carried out in such ways as integration into curriculum subjects, into individual curriculum subjects, as well as an intersubjective approach. Emphasized that most EU countries have achieved great success in the introduction of competency approach to the curricula content, however they are at different stages of their implementation in curricula. The general trend in practical application of the competency approach in developed countries is to strengthen the study of basic subjects that contribute to the acquisition of key competencies of students, further improvement of the intersubjective approach and introducing the latest teaching methods. To the promising areas of further research, the author includes the definition of content of competency-oriented education components and ways of forming natural science competency in basic school students.