Granì (Jul 2017)
The challenging issues of testing and standardization in education: modern references for restructuring the philosophy of thinking and integration of Ukraine into the system of international rating PISA-2018
Abstract
The European vector in the foreign policy of our state brought up a number of serious challenges for the system of domestic education. They include not only the reorganization of the philosophy of thinking, but also the conscious, objective study of the essence of our system’s entering into the so-called European standards. It would be a mistake to think that the transfer of principles, approaches, forms and methods of work from the educational systems of different countries of the world will immediately produce a positive effect. Each system has its pros and cons. Practical experience of the use of different testing and standardization methods in different countries has already revealed a number of negative trends. Despite the fact that the testing industry is on the rise, the problems of the education quality still remain unsolved. In addition, politicians and officials are constantly tempted to give education assessments based on the results of rating and monitoring studies. Consequently, the objective picture of the essence and depth of the transformations, so necessary for the modern school, has disappeared from the analysis. Moreover, the competent evaluation of the activity of the main figure of the educational process – i.e. the teacher – has not been done. Testing, in a number of cases, turns a school into a training ground for testing tools, and it makes socialization, creativity, artwork and the formation of competencies to be a secondary task. Therefore, the critical view of the experience, which has been presented in the study, will tell practitioners how to enter the system of international standards and how to evaluate without repeating other people’s mistakes. The expediency of such analysis becomes especially urgent on the eve of Ukraine’s participation in 2018 PISA testing. At the same time, one cannot help paying attention to the undeniable conclusions about the direct connection between the results of testing the knowledge of the 15-year-old citizens of different countries of the world with the level of development of these states’ economies. For example, the top ten testing leaders in 2012 were the following countries and cities: Shanghai, Singapore, Taiwan, Republic of Korea, Japan, and Finland. Study of the essence of these results has led to the conclusion that the problem is not in testing or standardization itself, but in what exactly is going to be standardized. One of the most authoritative educational systems in Finland tests schoolchildren once, upon graduation. But it’s the state’s job to standardize the preparation of the teacher. Singapore carries out two types of testing and examinations: at 12 years of age and when young people enter universities. Analyzing the education systems of these countries, attention should be paid to the fact that, without giving up testing, they already focus not on cognitive skills and academic knowledge of the fundamentals of sciences, but on the competence paradigm of education. The 46th International Economic Forum in Davos, held in January 2016, clearly formulated the demands of the modern international labor market for the new qualities of its employees. As a result, this new approach can provide such high GDP growth rates per capita that no reform of the economic sector is able to achieve even if it is aimed at the improvement of the technological and managerial production processes. Transfer of domestic education from academic to innovative rails must start from preschool and primary education. This is not only the compulsory observance of the principles of continuity and consistency enshrined by the state and the consistency of all levels of education, but also an objective conscious need to equip the entire system with clear guidelines for the modern standardization. Moreover, possible risks should be taken into account, the achievements and shortcomings should be analyzed and, as a result, the requirements of the international labor market should be achieved. Therefore, the most urgent task is to choose a path for one’s reform. The end result should not be final testing as the end of the educational process, but it should rather bring up a person, who realizes the need for education throughout life and is able to achieve the set goals. The benefits of this study include the conclusions and analysis that in practice will allow managers determining the key points of application of forces while estimating the ways of fulfillment of the state order for the provision of educational services.
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