CLASSIFICATION AND CONTENT OF STUDENTS' LEADERSHIP SKILLS IN GENERAL SECONDARY EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

Introduction. The development of a democratic society requires a new generation of leaders who are in demand in every sector of the economy. The process of forming a future leader should begin at school. Leadership skills are important not only during learners' learning but also in their lives and help them to manage critical life situations. Considering all these vital requirements of modern civilization, the formation of leadership skills of students of general secondary education institutions occupies an important place in the educational process. Students' acquisition of leadership skills at school will help them improve academically and socially in their daily lives. School is the place which provides an excellent platform for students where they can participate in student government, take on leadership roles, and demonstrate leadership skills. The educational system provides students with such competencies, opportunities and necessary skills for them to become active participants in democratic processes, intercultural dialogue and the life of society in general. The educational system also enables learners to act as independent social agents capable of setting goals in life and achieving them. Рurpose. The article aims to substantiate the classification and content of leadership skills of students of general secondary education institutions. Methods. Analysis of regulatory and legal educational documents, theoretical work of Ukrainian and foreign authors on the topic of scientific research, generalization, systematization, and classification. Results. The approaches to determining the list and content of the leadership skills of the individual were analyzed based on the analysis of the scientific literature. In the course of research and experimental work, four groups of student leadership skills were formed: personal (initiative, time management, flexibility, purposefulness, responsibility, constant personal growth, stress resistance); social (emotional intelligence, communication, teamwork, social responsibility, ability to act autonomously); cognitive (critical thinking, creativity, ability to solve problems, self-learning and self-development, digital literacy, media literacy); civic (civic consciousness, volunteering, safety, participation in community life, respect for people). The content of each specific skill is revealed. Originality. The scientific novelty is that the concept of leadership skills was formulated for the first time as an integrative quality that unites personal, cognitive, social and civic groups of skills, the components of which are knowledge acquired in the learning process and skills formed in individual and group activities and aimed at the realization of a leadership role by students. Conclusion. Leadership skills are fundamental to the advancement of workforces and organizations. In any democratic country, the importance of leadership skills of students in general secondary education institutions cannot be denied. This is critically important for the development of the individual and the nation. Teaching student's leadership skills at school will go a long way toward achieving this goal. Educational institutions should organize activities aimed at developing leadership skills. However, school practice often lacks emphasis on these skills. We see the development and implementation of the Leadership Program for high school students as promising in terms of our research. Today's students are tomorrow's leaders who lead the country forward.