CC BY
31
LIFELONG EDUCATION AS OBJECTIVE REALITY IN THE CONTEXT OF THE SYSTEM OF ADVANCED TRAINING OF PEDAGOGICAL STAFF
N. Sh. Shakurova
New state educational standards, specialized education, IKT-technologies, e-learning, management in education, and the experience of Autonomous Educational Organization “Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools” - these are all the key issues of the education development strategy focused achieving new quality. In this situation, the system of advanced training became, as ever, highly in demand, and the reform of the system of advanced training of professionals of the education sector became a necessary and reasonable process. In accordance with the State Program of Education Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2011-2020, the joint-stock company “Center for Advanced Training of the Teaching Staff “©рлеу” was founded in 2012 (hereinafter “©рлеу”). Now, not only as a matter of fact, but also organizationally, the process of advanced training in the Republic has been integrated. ©рлеу^ mission is systemic advanced training of the teaching staff and improvement of professional skills of teachers. Among the strategic directions here are the following: (a) creating a new format of advanced training of teachers; (b) modernizing content of advanced training programs for teachers based on the best Kazakh and international experience; (c) creating conditions for effective functioning of the advanced training system, ensuring quality of education.
The institutions that are currently the branches of ©рлеу have to solve the significant questions, “How is it possible under conditions of the existence of new approaches to advanced training to develop and ensure an individual path for a teacher’s professional development?”; “How is it necessary to change the content and technologies of educational activities in the system of advanced training to reach this goal?”.
Taking world experience into account, the main task of ©рлеу is to develop the professional competence of a teacher, who can not only apply new pedagogical knowledge and technology, but also make the reflexive changes in his/her own professional activity in the context of current trends and priorities. The Autonomous Educational Organization “Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools”, which synthesizes the best practices of world education, is a catalyst for modernization of the educational system in the Republic. The branch started transferring the experience of Autonomous Educational Organization “Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools” to all schools of the Region starting from 2012 through mastering the content of the program of the level courses, developed by it and by the University of Cambridge. Today, teachers who have completed the new format courses (certified teachers) are carriers of not only innovative technology, ensuring development of the educational system based on the new methodology, but also the experience of Autonomous Educational Organization “Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools”. The increase in the number of teachers in each school who have passed
270
the level courses creates a real basis for the removal of the main constraining factor - the lack of possibility of continuous interaction on various aspects of implementation of new ideas. Course content supposes involving each student in the study and analysis of his/her own practice, the so-called “research in action”. Mastering the program required from the teacher learning and understanding of a significant amount of the scientific and practical research in the field of teaching, participation in professional discussions with colleagues and coaches, including those invited from abroad. Development of network cooperation, as an encouraging factor for formation of the professional society of teachers of the Region, was determined as a main direction of further development of the advanced training system. Such a society contributes to efficient communication between scientists, methodologists, and teachers. This is an effective resource to improve professional skills of the teaching staff and, consequently, the formation of lifelong education practices.
All teachers and coaches, registered in the network society of the branch, have the opportunity to discuss issues that arise in the course of training or professional activities in online mode, to share ideas and best practices, and, more importantly, to provide methodological psychological mutual aid. A special role is played in the process of modernization of the advanced training system by monitoring the effectiveness of advanced training courses, which is a completely new direction of work of the Institute. Previously, teachers received a certificate at the end of the courses, and their future professional activities were not tracked. Monitoring studies to evaluate the effectiveness of organization of the course of a new format are conducted using a single procedure used in the whole Republic, which facilitates the identification of trends and problematic issues that require making appropriate adjustments in the curriculum of the courses. Visiting lessons of teachers, who passed courses of the new format, allowed us to see how the acquired skills of the integrated use of seven modules of the Program provide for an activity-based foundation of educational process organization. Participants of the training process agreed that changes were obvious. Individual teachers already today act as tutors for the dissemination of the ideas of module-based programs studied in the course of preparation. Thus, in the system of secondary education, there is a resource, a so-called “critical mass”, with a new quality level of professional and educational activities, which is consistent with the tasks set forth in the State Program for the Development of Education in the direction of increasing the role of the teacher and raising the prestige of the teacher’s profession.
Based on monitoring studies, the Institute prepared an open report, which gives the characteristics of the state and development of the system of advanced training of teachers, as a resource of improving the quality of education in the Region. Recognition of objective reality, and advancement of ideas and projects capable of responding to the challenges of our time - these are the purpose of the open Report. Certainly, conducting monitoring research has a significant impact, on the one hand, upon the improvement of activity of the Institute itself, and on the other hand, upon the professional development of teachers in the intercourse period, upon the quality of teaching at school.
271
In terms of the organizational structure, content and methodology consistent with international practice, we are at a stage today of formation of the system of advanced training of teachers. The directions of the National Plan of Actions for Development of Functional Literacy of Schoolchildren for 2012 - 2016 were taken as a basis for determining directions of the innovative development of the system of advanced training: (a) updating content of education; (b) introduction of “Elearning” and pedagogical technologies of teaching; (c) improvement of a teacher’s evaluation activity on the basis of international experience in the evaluation of educational achievements TIMMS, PISA.
Further development of the advanced training system in the new format will make it possible to become: in terms of form - an innovative project with a clear goal, and certain duration; in terms of content - a “bridge” between the science and practice that creates the educational environment of lifelong education; in terms of organization - an open system that includes scientific knowledge and a wide range of forms, methods and technologies of teaching practice.
Teachers come from a large variety of groups differing by age, specialization, education, status, position, degree of creativity and level of ability, and most importantly, by professional philosophy and beliefs. Successful implementation of the State Program of Education Development in all its priority areas will be largely determined by whether we can achieve solidarity of teachers in understanding the fundamentally important positions of the teaching philosophy of a contemporary school.
The formation and development of teachers’ ability to carry out effective teaching activities, their readiness for continuous professional growth, social and occupational mobility, and a focus on the educational needs of teachers are considered by us to be a major resource and a mechanism of effective cooperation of all stakeholders of the educational system.
Translated from Russian by Znanije Central Translations Bureau
272
