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Relevance. In the modern world more researchers and practitioners from different fields are preoccupied with the changing the shape of a child in society: a child is not an object of pedagogical influence, but a subject whose opinion is valuable and should be taken into account when making decisions that directly concern him. The possibility for children to be heard at preschool age is an important basis for the development of civic competencies that do not appear by themselves at an older age. At the same time, the researchers also note that there is a gap between the recognition of the value of child and real practice. The possibility not only to hear the voices of young children, but also to make them visible and significant in society, to offer children the means of expressing their opinions is a methodological challenge for researchers and practitioners of preschool education, which requires special competencies.

The aim of the study is to analyze modern studies and projects devoted to the professional competencies of a teacher and the conditions accompanying their development necessary for the implementation of the principle of participation in educational practice.

Description of the research progress. 19 studies and projects were analyzed from the point of view of the possibilities and limitations of the implementation of the principle of participation in educational practice. Two key aspects were identified: the possibilities and limitations of the implementation of the principle of participation in educational practice, which include teachers’ ideas about participation and the influence of the broader context of the community and organizational culture, and professional competencies of teachers necessary for support their participation in kindergarten and primary school, and approaches to their development.

The results of the study. In the article the problem of implementing the principle of participation is considered not only in the context of the structure of a separate preschool group, but also in the organizational culture of the kindergarten as a whole. The authors conclude that it is necessary to reflect on the ideas of participation in order to create conditions for its support in kindergarten, as well as the need for a comprehensive study of factors related to the organizational culture of the kindergarten, which can influence the development of participatory practices. Based on the analysis, two groups of pedagogical competencies were identified: general competencies necessary to create basic conditions for participation, and more specific competencies necessary to empower children’s opportunities to influence decision-making.

Conclusion. The article formulates recommendations for training preschool teachers and kindergarten teams.

This article presents findings from theoretical research on the issues of studies with children conducted by educators in terms of applying psychological and pedagogical characterization as a strategy. The aim of this study is to uncover the specifics of applying this strategy and compare it with the strategy of observation. The methodological basis is activity and competency-based approaches, whereas the main method of study is a theoretical analysis of the psychological and pedagogical body of literature on this issue. As a result of the research, an understanding of the above mentioned strategy in the entirety of its aims, principles, milestones, and outcomes was achieved. The study shows that psychological and pedagogical characterization as a strategy for the study of children follows the general logic of scientific research in terms of the sequence of its stages (planning, content-organization, analytic-outcome, and prognostic) and that it is implemented through special diagnostic terms of reference. A diagram of the characterization, the structure of which reflects the complex of aims and stages in the study of a child, functions as guidance for the strategy. Part of the diagram describes the most significant markers and directions of psychological development (the level of achievement for different kinds of activity; cognitive, speech, social, and motor development; the particularities of a child’s personality and their individuality) as the basis for a psychological portrait of the child. The resulting part of the diagram includes conclusions drawn from the comparison and synthesis of the obtained facts according to the principles of scientific research and a tentative prediction of a child’s further development. The improvement of the algorithm for evaluating the text of the characterization according to the aims and principles of its composition is an important direction for the perfection of the strategy. The criteria of the characterization are the integrity of the child’s psychological portrait, the quality of conclusions and established pedagogical recommendations, and the position of the educator in their interaction with the child at the information gathering stage.