The formation and development of continuing education of French teachers at the legislative level from the reflection of the idea of continuing teacher education in the "General Plan" of J. Condorcet (Condorcet, 1792) in 1792 to the modern period are analyzed. It is established that at the beginning of the XXI century the policy of professional development of personnel in France is excuted jointly by the state, regions and social partners. At present, the right to education is determined at the constitutional level, based on the Constitution and the Education Code. It defines the tasks and organization of institutions-providers of professional development, states the rights and responsibilities of the state and departments.
It is revealed that the organization of foreign language learning in educational institutions in France is carried out in accordance with the “Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment (CEFR)” (2001) and the “Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, teaching, assessment - Companion Volume wth new descriptors” (2018) on key lifelong competences where learning foreign languages is an important item.
There are trends towards the introduction of a new model of lifelong learning, which is explained by the low demand for the participation of French teachers in professional development activities. An integrated approach corresponds to the integrity of the work: focus on the needs of teachers on issues related to professional practice and contexts; consideration of the learning process with the following developments for initial training; interest in professional development in the context of practice and improvement of professional knowledge.
It was found that the structure of state management by professional development of foreign language teachers in France, is developed on the basis of research on professional needs, consists of a long-term (from 2 semesters to 3 years) and a short-term (1-3 weeks) course training in the institutions of continuing education, professional academic mobility, including international, distance education, self-education and participation in research projects to promote the study of modern living languages - all these components operate on the basis of the national plan for teacher training. Each academy, headed by the rector, has a commission for the teaching of modern foreign languages, which is responsible for ensuring the diversity, consistency and continuity of the language courses offered, for disseminating information in institutions, appointing staff, working with parents and students on teaching modern languages, updating the methodological base in accordance with the identified needs and checking the compliance of the language proposal with local specialities.
The administrative structure and additional departments for improving professional skills are considered in the leading institutions of continuing course training, the Higher National Institutes of Teaching and Education (Instituts Nationaux Supérieurs du Professorat et de l’Éducation), hereinafter – INSPÉ, on the example of INSPÉ of the Academy of Paris. Together with the academies, they carry out continuous professional development of teaching and pedagogical staff with the maximum approximation to the conditions of the tasks they perform. The tasks of INSPÉ are to cooperate with the Academic Delegation of National Education Training (La délégation académique à la formation des personnels de l'Éducation nationale), to work out a curriculum adapted to the academy's training specifications and to propose significant actions in the field of training trainers according to strategic needs.
The dissertation considers the formation of the continuing educational system of independent Ukraine and the features of professional development of foreign language teachers in the light of modern ukrainian reforms; a comparative analysis of organizational and pedagogical conditions of professional development of foreign language teachers in France and Ukraine is performed that served as a basis for working out recommendations on the directions of the implementation of the French experience in professional development of foreign language teachers in Ukraine, namely: conceptual, regulatory, organizational and managerial, educational-methodical, research, qualimetric.
The outlined recommendations for the use of progressive ideas of professional development experience of foreign language teachers in France are based on the identified shortcomings of the system of continuing pedagogical education in Ukraine and relate to the formation of a profile of modern effective, highly educated Ukrainian teacher.
