Opportunities for Implementing a Cross-Disciplinary Approach in Institutions of Professional Pre-Higher and Higher Education in Ukraine

Abstract

The paper highlights the opportunities for implementing an cross-disciplinary approach in institutions of professional pre-higher and higher education in Ukraine under conditions of decentralization. The paper aims to identify the status and prospects of implementing the cross-disciplinary approach in institutions of professional pre-higher and higher education under conditions of guaranteed academic autonomy. The following theoretical methods are used in research: analysis of scientific literature and legislative acts; synthesis, systematization and generalization of the obtained results; surveys; statistical processing of empirical data. The results. It is found out that the academic autonomy of vocational schools and higher education institutions in Ukraine is declared at the state level through the right to introduce specialties, develop and implement educational programs, independently determine forms of education and forms of organizing educational process, determine the content and curricular, provide publishing activities. The results of the survey among both vocational schools teachers and higher education institutions teachers show that the realization of the right to academic autonomy for different participants of educational process is not equal. They are most implemented for the education institutions administration, then for teachers and only then for students. It is substantiated that implementing the principle of autonomy of pre-higher and higher education institutions under the conditions of increased influence of the global labour market on education and growing qualification gap actualizes the need to introduce the cross-disciplinary approach. A survey aimed at introducing forms of cross-disciplinary education shows their above-average use in vocational schools and higher education institutions, mostly in cross-disciplinary links, combining knowledge, methods from different specialties while studying individual subjects and between disciplines in the curriculum. The direction of development of cross-disciplinary programs is the least realized in practice. Conclusions. Positive developments in terms of efficiency, productivity, quality and affordability are possible only if all the stakeholders unite their efforts as well as the staff of vocational schools and higher education institutions start to work together. The research provides the basis to assert that the strategic directions for developing educational sector in Ukraine aimed at decentralization and autonomy identified at the state level are relevant. The autonomy of educational institutions improves the quality of vocational education through the development and implementation of new specialties and specializations, the integration of educational programs within individual specialties, strengthening cross-disciplinary links at the level of content and teaching methodology.