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"Philosophy of Education"

2015 year, number 1

The problems of assessing the competences of higher education students

N. V. Chekaleva
Omsk State Pedagogical University, Quay Tukhachevskogo, 14, Omsk, 644099
Keywords: competence-based approach, competence, competence profile, competence map, assessment, complex assessment, assessment of competences, assessment tools, model of the assessment process, higher education students

Abstract

The author raises a question about the complexity of assessment of the higher education students’ competences: its structure, content, and procedure. The author thinks that, first of all, the complexity of competence assessment is connected with the differences in the interpretation of competence. Some views on how to interpret the meaning of competence are presented in the article: in Great Britain - it is one’s ability to perform required professional functions, in France - these are resources for carrying out certain activity, in Germany - these are professional and personal knowledge and skills. It is underlined that in Russia competence-based approach is an innovation and in Russian practice competence is one’s ability to complete professional tasks. It is supposed that the development of a complex assessment will assist to identify the levels of competence. The assessment criterion of the levels of the higher education students’ competences is students’ readiness for professional activity that includes personal, theoretical and practical components. The article presents the European practice of assessing specialists’ competences: developing the competence profiles and competence maps. The competence profile of the specialist is a certain image of this specialist that includes a set of characteristics. The competence profile is a basis on which the structure and content of the specialist’s competences are identified. The competence map consists of actual and potential competences of the specialist. The author points to the main problems of assessing students’ competences in Russian higher education institutions and proposes some ways to solve these problems; describes a model of the competences assessment process and gives a set of assessment tools for carrying out the procedure of competences assessment. The author thinks that a set of assessment tools should contain case-study, in-basket exercises, simulations, skills tests, direct observation, problem situations, portfolio, resume, preparation of course and diploma projects, problem solving projects, action-demonstration techniques and questions techniques, additional oral and written tests, etc. In conclusion, the author indicates the directions of how to develop the practice of assessing the higher education students’ competences: developing a clear understanding of the competence structure, studying the labor market requirements for specialist’s competences, developing cooperation with the representatives of labor market, developing competence profiles of specialists and competence maps of University students, identifying the place of each University discipline in the process of students’ competences development, elaborating assessment tools for competence assessment in accordance with the determined competence units. Moreover, the author admits the necessity to elaborate the tools that can assess the unique experience of each person.