RELEVANCE ASPECTS OF EXTERNAL ASSESSMENT OF HIGHER PEDAGOGICAL INSTITUTION GRADUATES’ QUALIFICATION

GRADUATES’ QUALIFICATION The aim of the article is to analyze the relevance of the problem of external (independent) assessment of qualification of graduates majoring in pedagogy. Research methods embrace multidimensional analysis of the relevance of the problem under study, comparative analysis of Russian and international practices of external assessment in professional education, abstraction and concretization, generalization and classification. The research is mainly focused on the Russian system of qualification assessment and the European system represented by the Bologna and Copenhagen processes. Interpretations of the concept "qualification" and procedures of qualification assessment were used as grounds for comparison. In the course of the research the authors have revealed the relevance aspects of external assessment of graduate qualification. Theoretically, the relevance is substantiated through a statement of the problem of defining the concept "qualification". Methodologically, relevance is presented as a view through the prism of a new philosophy in the system of education and qualifications. Relevance in methodological terms is considered through the classification of different approaches to the implementa-tion of the concept of "qualification" in practice. Relevance in practical terms is shown through the study of normative regulation of external assessment of qualifications. The authors stress a complexity of the issue and a need to develop the concept of independent assessment of qualifications for higher pedagogical institution graduates.