THE PHENOMENON OF PROFESSIONAL PRE-HIGHER EDUCATION: THE FIRST STAGE OF LEGAL AND REGULATORY FORMATION (JUNE 2019 – FEBRUARY 2022)

Abstract

Based on the analysis of the Law of Ukraine "On Professional Pre-Higher Education" adopted on June 6, 2019, and other official documents, the article clarifies the essence and features of the first stage in the formation of the phenomenon of professional pre-higher education from the time of the adoption of the said act until the beginning of the large-scale aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine on February 24, 2022. Certain aspects of this issue are highlighted in the context of the field of knowledge 01 "Education. Pedagogy".

It is noted that the adoption of the Law of Ukraine "On Higher Education" (2014) initiated a five-year period of legal and regulatory uncertainty regarding the functioning of colleges, technical schools, and vocational schools as former higher education institutions of levels I-II of accreditation. Significant adjustments to their development were introduced by the framework Law of Ukraine "On Education" (2017). It stimulated the adoption of the Law of Ukraine "On Professional Pre-Higher Education" in June 2019, which marked a qualitatively new stage in the development of colleges, technical schools, and vocational schools. Many of them acquired the status of professional colleges. It is argued that the legislators did not provide a clear definition of professional pre-higher education, which is interpreted as aimed at the formation and development of educational qualifications, confirming an individual's ability to perform specialized professional tasks and carry out limited management functions.

The essence and features of the main structural components of professional pre-higher education in Ukraine are characterized, and the search for its analogues in foreign education systems is emphasized.

Three trends that determined the process of forming the system of professional pre-higher education in June 2019 – February 2022 are analysed: the implementation of innovations and organizational measures for its development defined in legal and regulatory support; the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which paralyzed the normal functioning of professional pre-higher education institutions and led to their transition to online learning; and the intensification of academic discourse on the role, significance, and prospects for the development of professional pre-higher education.