CONCEPTIONS OF DEMOCRATIC CITIZENSHIP FORMING IN THE SYSTEM OF THE HIGHER EDUCATION OF CANADA

Introduction. Citizenship education of young people, their active bringing to participating in state-creative and public processes are the leading tasks of the educational system in the conditions of present time. It is thereon marked in the National Programme of Patriotic Education, National Doctrine of Development of Education in Ukraine, in the National Strategy of Development of Education in Ukraine on a period till 2021, the Laws of Ukraine «About Education» and «About Higher Education», other native normative pedagogical documents. In the context of the world integration processes, European choice and development of the state system in Ukraine realization of democratic principles of citizen society in the educational process of general and higher school in the conditions of updating of Ukrainian society and presentation of public activity acquires major actuality. Purpose. In the setting of the outlined scientific and practical research directions it is decided to carry out the comparative pedagogical analysis of conceptions of democratic citizenship forming in the system of the higher education of Canada with intention of establishment of the leading conceptual approaches to its realization as means of development of democratic state and the higher education in Ukraine. Methods. Theoretical formal logical and pedagogical comparative analyses of various aspects of the problem, the axiomatic method, the deductive method, descent from abstract to concrete. Results. The conducted research allowed drawing conclusion, that preparation of a citizen in the widest understanding is one of the leading tasks of the modern system of public education in Canada. Inconsistencies of approaches to citizenship education and debates on existent conceptions of democratic citizenship are predefined by (1) internal complication, (2) normative character and (3) absence of unity in interpretation of terminology. Present conceptions are differentiated, primarily, by degree of citizen participation in public life, and are grouped in elite, populist and transitional varieties. At the same time, the main tendency of pedagogical researches of essence of democratic citizenship in Canada can be categorised as transition from declaration of simple awareness of citizens about their own rights and duties and partiality for the ideals of democracy to stimulation of the initiative contributing in community and society life. Originality. The comparative pedagogical analysis of conceptions of democratic citizenship forming in the system of the higher education of Canada has been carried out for the first time in the Ukrainian pedagogical science. Contradictions and debatable aspects of present conceptions of democratic citizenship forming in the system of the higher education of Canada have been exposed; the progress of the most important pedagogical theory trends in this sphere of education is determined. Conclusions. Introducing conceptual principles and tendencies in development of democratic citizenship of specialists, which have been found out in Canadian experience, into the pedagogical process of their training in Ukraine will assist realization of democratic values of citizen social order in educational activity of the higher school in conditions of renovation and increasing public activity of Ukrainian society. Determination and comparison of significant descriptions of distinct conceptions of democratic citizenship education, which have been implemented practically in the Canadian system of the higher education, is a perspective direction of subsequent scientific research of the problem.