Pedagogues of Ukraine of the Latter Half of the Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries: an Encyclopaedic Dictionary for the Educational Process

Abstract

The article under scrutiny herein reveals the importance of a holistic presentation of the collective pedagogical biography of Ukraine in the latter half of the nineteenth and early twenty-first centuries, and approaches to its creation in the form of an Encyclopaedic Dictionary for the educational process, the preservation of historical memory, and the consolidation of Ukrainian society. The argument is made that this dictionary systematises pedagogical biographical knowledge of different historical periods and relevant contexts, modern biohistoriography. Thus, users will learn about the biography of a particular person, his/her achievements, contribution to the education of Ukraine at the turn of the century, and influence on its future generations. The methodology employed in the creation of the dictionary, including the technological approaches (criteria for selecting personalities and writing biographical references, structuring, design, etc.), will prove beneficial to those tasked with the compilation of similar publications.

It has been posited that the Dictionary can be widely used in the educational process as a means of providing information support for studying the life and work of generations of educators of the past; for shaping the pedagogical outlook of future educators, their awareness of the history of education and pedagogical thought of Ukraine as an important value component of professional training. The Dictionary materials (information about ideas, theories, methods and technologies developed by teachers in different historical realities) can also become a methodological resource for teachers and research and teaching staff. Attention is also focused on the importance of the Dictionary for research on pedagogy, history of education in Ukraine, biographic or biographical studies of a historiographical, source, biographical and comparative nature.

It is substantiated that the prospective biographical edition under development, as a significant contribution to the history of education in Ukraine during martial law and post-war reconstruction, will help to find answers to the current challenges associated with war, emigration, losses and the need to restore the educational process.