The aim of the research is to reveal various ways for developing the independent mechanisms of education quality assessment.

Methods involve the analysis of the existing views concerning the quality assessment of teaching staff activities.

Results: The research findings demonstrate functional specificity of comprehensive schools, the main phases of socio-pedagogic assessment of teaching staff activities, and the main criteria and indices of their monitoring. The author considers professional educational activity as a general assessment criterion. The main feature of socio-pedagogic assessment procedures involves participation of different categories of teaching and research staff, along with students’ parents and the neighboring society members.

Scientific novelty: The author specifies the concept of socio-pedagogic assessment of teaching staff activities.

Practical significance: Implementation of the research outcomes can stimulate professional activity of pedagogical society in developing the independent system of education quality assessment.

The publication continues the discussion, started by Yu.V. Larina in ≪Education in Search of the Congruity Principle≫ concerning the modern methodology of pedagogical science; and identifies the criteria of the given principle along with the limitations of the post-non-classical approaches to the humanities.

Methods: The methodology involves the analysis of existing view points, formalization of characteristics of post-non-classical science, and reflection of pedagogical principle of cultural conformity.

Results: The research outcomes demonstrate that the gradual undermining of the fundamental science results in erosion of methodological background. In case of interdisciplinary subjects, a researcher is forced to integrate different methods and techniques, which provokes further disruption of the methodology.

Scientific novelty: The author classifies and extrapolates to the humanities sphere the main characteristics of post-non-classical science; and makes a conclusion about the gradual decline of researchers’ training quality due to the lack of methodological clarity, and aggressive forms of science vulgarization leading to spontaneous development of clipping methodology.

The practical significance: Implementation of the research findings can activate both theoretical and methodological aspects of teacher’s training and selfeducation.

The research is aimed at identifying the essence of the cognitive competence concept in comparison with the concepts of cognitive independence and activity.

Methods: The methodology implies a theoretical analysis of psychopedagogical and methodological materials on the cognitive competence formation; generalized teaching experience; empirical methods of direct observations of educational process in the secondary school classrooms; interviews with school teachers and pupils.

Results: The research outcomes reveal a semantic intersection between the cognitive competence, independence and activity, and their distinctive features. The paper emphasizes the importance of cognitive competence as an adaptive mechanism in situations of uncertainty and instability.

Scientific novelty: The author clarifies the concept of cognitive competence regarding it as a multi-component and systematic characteristic of a personality.

Practical significance: The research findings can be used by specialists in didactics developing the teaching techniques of cognitive competence formation for schoolchildren.

The study is aimed at investigating the trends of vocational training development reflecting the demands of changing professional world.

Methods: The applied methods include historic, genetic and socio-context analysis of the current developments in vocational training sphere.

Results: The research findings prove the priority of meta-professional and meta-competency landmarks in vocational masters training.

Scientific novelty: The author points out the lagging behind of the Federal State Educational Standard and corresponding vocational training programs compared to the fast growing social and professional mobility. The paper emphasizes the urgent need for vocational pedagogical education as a part of vocational training at all levels - the secondary, higher and postgraduate.

Practical significance: The research outcomes can be used for further development of conceptual, methodological, organizational and contextual bases of vocational masters training.

Purpose: The paper considers possible ways of organizing a regional system of continuing education based on the experience analysis of vocational institutions in the Vologda region.

Results: Implementation of the lifelong learning paradigm calls for changing the status, structure and content of secondary vocational education, given the innovative growth of domestic economy. However, the previous positive experience in vocational training should be preserved and transformed according to the current demands.

Scientific novelty: The research findings include the main formation concepts of continuing education system implying the integration of professions and their groups in particular industries, diversification and differentiation of educational process.

Practical significance: The recommended model of vocational training, based on the wide integration of group-generating professions, is relevant in the situation of decreasing demand for workforce reproduction and ever changing list of required professions. The given model meets the demands for secondary vocational education in terms of flexibility, dynamics, differentiation and individualization of education.

The research is aimed at investigating the negative consequences of IT implementation in education related to the open informational environment. The author continues to explore the issue emphasized by V.A. Testov in ≪Mathematical Education in the Network Environment≫ (№ 2, 2013).

Methods: The methods involve the analysis of modern trends and techniques of IT implementation in education.

Results: The research outcomes include the examples of possible adverse trends and phenomena resulting from the use of hypertext, multimedia and network technologies, as well as different informational instrumental environments that enable the user to automatically control the cognitive operations. Scientific novelty: The author singles out and summarizes the problems of fostering the critical thinking and correlation between the systematic knowledge, acquired in educational process, and fragmentary one, received from various alternative information sources.

Practical significance: The research findings can help practicing teachers minimize the negative phenomena, related to implementation of new electronic educational technologies, and provide a starting point for further research in the given field.

The research objective is investigation of value orientation system and its development in the context of social and professional personality growth in the higher school.

Methods: For diagnosing the value sphere, the author applies the morphological life value tests of V.F. Sopov and L.V. Karpushina, and C.S. Bubnov’s diagnostic method of the actual value orientation structure.

Results: The research findings demonstrate a significant potential of vocational education environment for fostering the students’ life values due to the organized and structured educational processes, and involved psychological and pedagogical teaching techniques. Additionally, the author emphasizes the interrelation between a student’s capability of living in the present, flexible behavior, and self-awareness, - on the one hand, and such values as a family, financial position, achievements, social contacts and creativity.

Scientific novelty: The research identifies the development dynamics of students’ value orientation in the course of university studies with regard to the gender differences.

Practical significance: The identified specificities of students’ value orientation dynamics can be used for planning the content of training sessions and extracurricular activities.

The research is aimed at specifying and developing the modern control system of current academic achievements of junior university students; and the main task is to find the adequate ways for stimulating the junior students’ learning activities, and estimating their individual achievements.

Methods: The author applies his own assessment method for estimating and stimulating students’ learning outcomes, based on the rating-point system of gradually obtained points building up a student’s integrated learning outcomes.

Results: The research findings prove that implementation of the given method can increase the motivational, multiplicative and controlling components of the learning process.

Scientific novelty: The method in question is based on the new original game approach to controlling procedures and stimulation of learning motivation of the economic profile students.

Practical significance: The recommended technique can intensify the incentivebased training activities both in and outside a classroom, developing thereby students’ professional and personal qualities.

The objective of the study is to investigate the measurement accuracy of latent variables depending on a number of dichotomous test items and variation range.

Methods: Investigation is based on the simulation experiments.

Results: The authors make recommendations for selecting a number of dichotomous test items and variation range depending on the required measurement precision of latent variables.

Scientific novelty: The research demonstrates statistical correlation between the measurement precision of latent variables and a number of test items and variation range.

Importance for practice: The research results can be used while developing the questionnaires and tests for measuring the latent variables.

The research objective is to demonstrate the specificity of artisan training in the Ural region in the XVII–XVIII centuries, and explore the relating historical and pedagogical heritage and its implementation in the modern vocational training system.

Methods: The applied theoretical methods include the historical and genetic comparative analysis and synthesis of identified trends and specificities of artisan training; empirical methods involve data selection, analysis, systematization and classification.

Results: The research findings reveal the specifics and key components of the artisan training system designed for developing the trainees’ abilities and practical skills.

Scientific novelty: The proposed structure of historical pedagogical heritage is specified including the objective, axiological, regulative and technological aspects.

Practical significance: The achieved results concerning the craftsmanship development in the past can be incorporated into the modern vocational training programs.