Dimensions of National Education Policy in Ukraine

Abstract

This paper examines the degree of development of public policy issues in Ukrainian education. The national policy in the field of Ukrainian education is exercised by the executive authorities and local governments on the basis of the concept of education accepted by authorities and approved by the public opinion. Ukrainian education policy is a tool of influence of the political elite of Ukrainian society for the younger generation. Ukrainian officials, who have all the levers of influence, make certain transformation in the concept of development education, independently, without regard to public view or control of the society. The national policy in the field of Ukrainian education is based on strategic documents of education; constitutional norms, international treaties ratified by the supreme legislative body; legislation; Executive Orders of the President and so on. A preliminary analysis of modern Ukrainian education policy reveals its ideological eclecticism, which creates a favorable environment for the formation of internal contradictions, the slowdown of reforms and the impossibility of transformations. The key assumptions which determine the model of “rational state—sovereign” is determined as: the function of higher education; evaluation of higher education is based on the definition of political effectiveness; terms of interaction based hierarchical subordination and submission, participation of society in education is limited; developing solutions rigidly centralized from top to bottom; hierarchical control system; comprehensive nature of public exposure; autonomy of any of limited scope solution “technical issues”; changes in higher education are the result of changes in political leadership.