FORMING KEY COMPETENCIES BY MEANS OF A TEXTBOOK

Abstract

Reforming general secondary education in Ukraine involves modernization of the content of education, which should be built on a competency-based approach. The requirement to form key competencies of students is achieved provided the organization of the educational process is appropriate. A textbook was, is and remains a didactic tool, which has a certain role in this process. Scientific publications of scholars who at the same time are the authors of textbooks, affirm that a textbook really is a means by which students’ competencies are formed. However, most articles are devoted to a textbook of some subject and its features in the formation of a subject competency. The authors of this paper investigate the problem of the formation of key competencies by means of a textbook. Under the conditions of competitive selection of textbooks for grade 11, the examination of submitted projects of textbooks was carried out. Among the list of parameters were those according to which experts had to identify whether a textbook provides the formation of key competencies, or contains tasks that help to the develop competencies, or motivates learning. Experts should evaluate these parameters by the appropriate number of points and justify them in writing. Expert opinions are available for viewing on the website of the Institute of Education Content Modernization, which is responsible for conducting the competition. The results of the analysis of expert conclusions show that all the textbooks have the capabilities to form key competencies. This is confirmed by the quality of informative texts of the textbooks and the availability of competency-oriented tasks. The highest score is given to the Ukrainian language and literature textbooks. History and mathematics textbooks also have extremely high opportunities. However, the complex problem of the formation of key competencies is not solved. Each textbook traditionally highlights its subjective content. According to the authors of the article, this problem can be solved in this way. Even at the stage of forming the content of educational subjects to distribute the key competencies that can most effectively be formed by the subject. To formulate the expected results, which ascertain the formation of key competencies and to develop a system of textbooks on their basis. The effectiveness of such textbooks will be determined not only by their internal parameters, but also by the way of their using by student and teacher in the joint educational activity. Textbooks on different subjects should be interrelated and complement each other in the formation of key competencies.