BARRIER-FREE EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT AS A STRATEGIC PRIORITY FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN PRIMARY SCHOOL

Abstract

The article is devoted to a comprehensive study of the formation of a barrier-free educational environment in the context of modern educational transformations in Ukraine. The regulatory framework, management mechanisms, and theoretical foundations of accessibility in education are analyzed. The role of public administration and educational management in ensuring the quality of primary education is substantiated. It is proven that barrier-free accessibility is an integrative characteristic of educational quality and a precondition for sustainable educational development. It is noted that mechanisms for public management of barrier-free education involve training administrative, managerial, and teaching staff with the necessary specialized competencies. Particular attention is paid to creating conditions that promote the most effective adaptation and socialization of children with special educational needs. Despite some positive results, the implementation of barrier-free education in Ukraine faces numerous difficulties. To develop this area, it is necessary to further improve the legislative framework and financial mechanisms, create a supportive school environment, develop material and technical resources, methodological and human resources, and overcome social and professional stereotypes. Scientific analysis of the implementation of public management mechanisms for barrier-free education allows us to assess the readiness of managerial, administrative, and teaching staff for professional activity in an inclusive educational environment. Understanding the concept of barrier-free education as a holistic theoretical and practical construct determines the modeling of a management system capable of ensuring the effective implementation of public administration in this sphere in educational institutions. The main principles of training in this context are systemic, axiological, subject-oriented, competencybased, contextual, and acmeological approaches. The methodological concept emphasizes that the effectiveness of training depends on educational innovations and pedagogical conditions that contribute to the successful acquisition of methodological knowledge and practical skills by specialists for working in inclusive education. Contemporary national practices of ensuring barrier-free access and social inclusion in some countries of the world have been studied. The relevant policy documents are characterized, and the general methodology and its relationship with European and international standards are defined. Measures in the areas of social, economic, civic, physical, and digital accessibility, as well as universal infrastructure design, that can be applied in Ukraine are analyzed.