CONTINUOUS FORMATION OF SKILLS FOR DESIGNING A PERSONAL EDUCATIONAL TRAJECTORY

Abstract

This article presents a scientific-theoretical substantiation of the continuous formation of learners' skills of designing a personal educational trajectory (PET) across the successive stages of the continuing education system. The relevance of the study derives from the fact that the ability to design one's own educational path cannot be formed once and for all at a single stage of schooling; it must be cultivated cumulatively, with each educational level building on the competences acquired at the previous one and preparing the learner for the next, up to and including lifelong, self-directed learning in adulthood. The aim of the research is to substantiate the age-stage structure of this continuity, to identify the mechanisms of vertical and horizontal continuity that connect the stages, and to determine the pedagogical conditions under which the discontinuities typical of current practice can be overcome. The study employed the methods of theoretical analysis and systematisation of scientific literature, comparative-pedagogical analysis, structural-functional modelling, and pedagogical observation. The analysis showed that trajectory-design skill develops through four successive age-related levels — propaedeutic (preschool and primary school), elementary-conscious (lower and middle stages of general secondary school), independent-reflective (upper secondary and vocational education), and self-directed-lifelong (higher education and adult learning) — and that continuity between these levels is secured by a portfolio carried through from stage to stage, by unified diagnostic criteria, and by coordinated action among teachers of successive levels. The conclusion substantiates the necessity of a unified continuity standard for trajectory-design skill, of cross-level coordination among teachers, and of a single electronic portfolio that accompanies the learner throughout the entire educational path. Practical recommendations are proposed for the stage-by-stage, cumulative introduction of the described system into the continuing education system of the Republic of Uzbekistan.