DISTANCE LEARNING AND EDUCATION MODERNIZATION – DEADLOCK OR OPPORTUNITY?

The article discusses distance learning issues from the perspective of the implementation of the student-centred educational process – one of the principles of the Bologna Declaration. The relevance of research in this area is caused by the rapid growth in the number of universities implementing distance learning programs, which is taking place against the background of the modernization of the higher education system in accordance with the requirements of the Bologna process. The research investigates the educational process in the electronic educational environment, identifies problematic aspects, and finds practical solutions for implementation of distance learning based on modern pedagogical concepts. In this area, the author has identified several problems related to the reform of higher education, compliance with educational standards and development of distance education as a form of training qualified specialists. These problems include the low cognitive independence of students, the shift in the emphasis of teachers' motivation towards research activities, the professional unpreparedness of the latter for the effective use of modern pedagogical technologies and tools of electronic educational systems as well as insufficient filling of the required elements of the learning management systems themselves. The results of the work are reflected in specific recommendations for solving problems in part regulated by higher educational institutions – the development of the cognitive independence of students through the use of appropriate pedagogical approaches, a change in the motivation system of the pedagogues, aimed at the use of modern pedagogical technologies in educational process, as well as the formation of competencies in the field of electronic educational tools.