Педагогические науки/4.Стратегические направления реформирования системы образования.

Doctor of Phys. and Math. Sci. Gorobets Yu.I., Cand. of Tech. Sci. Porev S.M.,

Doctor of Phys. and Math. Sci. Reshetnyak S.O., Porev О.S.

National Technical University of Ukraine «Kyiv Polytechnic Institute»

Methodological and epistemological aspects of science promotion at universities

Higher Education and Science of Ukraine requires a reasonable set of methods and means of evaluation, promotion, organizational and legal methods of scientific, technological and innovation activities in universities. This set should contain rules and recommendations for the development of "world class" universities in the country and the promotion of science in every university, which establishing training on their own scientific results. At the same time, the existing legal documents defining the criteria and indicators for universities without their epistemological and methodological reasoning that only declares the status of "research university" and not encourage their further development.

The problem lies in a disparity between the existing methods and tools for evaluating and promoting science at the universities of Ukraine to current needs of higher education, the task of forming universities of "world class", research and development productivity. Identified problem is relevant component of the development and reform of higher education and science of Ukraine, corresponding to the task of mastering the country its rightful place in the European and global research and educational areas.

The aim of the study is to determine the methodological and epistemological principles, definitions and methods of stimulating the development of science in Higher Education, formation in Ukraine universities that meet "world class" according to the ideas of the international professional community.

As a part of the State Target Program of Ukraine "Science at the University" adopted "Criteria of the University, which provided (confirmed) status of research" [1], which in a research university must work at least 150 full-time doctors and 500 candidates of sciences, 300 full-time academic staff, 500 graduate and doctoral students. The total number of teachers and researchers in the "research university" could be about 1,300 people or more. The results are presented by publishing at least 40 books and textbooks approved by Ministry of Education and Science annually and publishing 150 articles in scientific journals that are included in international databases. Based on the above, in this university teacher or researcher should to write annually less than 1/9 article of that level and 1/30 monographs or textbooks. Indicators identified without proper epistemological and methodological studies, they are easily accessible for powerful universities and encourage them in the development of science. Most other indicators characterizing the quality of results only indirect.

Today an important role in the policy for higher education and research systems play university rankings. In reporting material of European University Association observed [2] that the number of global university rankings continue to grow, but they will become more specialized. Top global ranking systems focused on evaluating only the best universities, i.e. 1-3% of the universities, while regional universities also require consideration. Rating systems always contain subjective elements.

Ph.Altbach and J. Salmi [3] were presented the concept of the "world class" university as an institution with a high concentration of talented workers and students, significant resources. But the more detailed aspects of the research presented in the papers of H.Etzkowitz [4] in the context of transformation of research universities into entrepreneurial one, from research groups to small innovative firms. His concept of "Triple Helix" can significantly improve the definition of epistemological and methodological foundations [1], it incompletely solved the transition from basic research to applied problem-oriented developments that significantly alters the activity of scientists.

Central to our idea is that the formation of criteria and indicators related to research and development in universities must be based not only on the formal presentation of scientific results, but also on content that determine its quality. It is clear that such a means of stimulating and evaluation must be based on epistemological and methodological world achievements.

Another idea is that the evaluation of university performance and stimulate its research activities should consider not only the university as a whole, but the results of individual scientists, scientific-educational research groups that perform relatively stable collaborations, research and training centers, aspects of forming university "research core". The working hypothesis is the assertion that epistemologically and methodologically defined effectiveness of scientists and research groups should be the main focus of stimulating the development of science in the universities, and the methods and means of promotion should be adequate to systems of knowledge and knowledge production.

Our approach involves the development of criteria and indicators to encourage the development of science in the universities on the basis of epistemological and methodological principles. Evaluation of the quality of research and development at universities include formation of criteria and indicators based on requirement of scientific quality or other positive research outcome for individual scientists and scientific-pedagogical research groups. This concerns not only shapes of the outcome, but also the validity of the new provisions, their reproducibility, proof, consistency, coherence with other theories, intersubjectivity and other epistemological entities.

Requires development approach [1] to analyze the forms and methods of scientific and other modern systems of knowledge and knowledge production, the creation of epistemological and methodological bases of science development at universities. On this basis could be established reasonable forms of assessment and expert advice for projects of fundamental and applied research. Forms for the first time will take into account not only the characteristics of scientific knowledge, but also its neighboring types, including technical and technological knowledge, problem-oriented context-dependent knowledge production «Mode 2» (H.Nowotny [5]), phronetic research (B.Flyvbjerg [6]).

From university "research core" we can claim great results, but you have stable and sufficient to provide it. Research and learning "environment" around the core requires other measures to promote, facilitate the formation of new research groups. Scientific and educational "environment" is not a minor epistemological phenomenon, since to him belongs much of the teachers, their main result - the educational and methodical. Optimal balance for each university of science and education in specific conditions of existence and realize the potential of the institution determines its success in the socio-economic realities.

References

1. Porev S.M. University and Science. Epistemology, methodology and pedagogy of knowledge production. – Kyiv: Himdzhest, 2012. – 384p. – [ukrainian]

2. Rauhvargers A. Global university rankings and their impact. European University Association report on rankings, 2011. – 85p.

3. The road to academic excellence: the making of world-class research universities/ Ph.G.Altbach, J. Salmi (Eds.). - Washington, DC: The World Bank, 2011. – 394p.

4. Etzkowitz H. Research groups as ‘quasi-firms’: the invention of the entrepreneurial university/H.Etzkowitz//Research Policy. – 2003. – 32. – Р.109–121.

5. Nowotny H. The Need for Socially Robust Knowledge/H.Nowotny//TA-Datenbank-Nachrichten. - 1999. - №3/4. - P.12-16.

6. Flyvbjerg B. Phronetic Planning Research: Theoretical and Methodological Reflections/B.Flyvbjerg//Planning Theory & Practice – 2004. - 5,№3. – P.283–306.