Comparative pedagogical analyses were obtained on the basis of the generalised theoretical results. The aim of the study is to discover theoretical, methodological, didactic principles of a professional training of preschool teachers in the context of socio-political, economic, socio-cultural and pedagogical determinants in some European Union countries in order to justify the possibilities of introduction of an innovative European experience in preschool teachers? professional training in Ukraine and other countries. The results of comparative pedagogical research on professional development of preschool teachers? in some countries of the European Union are generalised; models were characterised; organisational and pedagogical support for the professional development of preschool teachers in some countries of the European Union was specified; the influence of European integration processes on the modernisation of professional development of preschool teachers in Ukraine and the comparative analysis of systems of professional development of preschool teachers in some countries of the European Union and Ukraine were studied; promising directions were described in the implementation of innovative ideas of the European experience in the vocational education system in Ukraine.

The problem of providing lifelong learning opportunities at the present stage of global community development remains relevant and is a top-priority agenda for practically all civilized countries. Positive experience in organizing professional training of preschool teachers in European countries requires that perspective trends in the modernization of future preschool teachers’ professional training should be specified following European standards of teacher education and the most significant achievements of higher education, its peculiarities and specifics should be preserved. Conceptual principles, peculiarities of historical development and key trends in the system of professional teacher education in Germany, France and the UK have been analyzed and determined; professional profiles, professional competency profiles and qualification requirements have been characterized; both national specific and general common trends in development of preschool teachers’ professional training in European countries have been outlined. The development of professional standards for teacher education in European countries contributes to specifying and developing professional profiles of preschool teachers in Europe that are rather diverse and determine the multifacetedness and multifunctionality of professional training. The main trends in education policy and qualification requirements for professional training of preschool teachers in European countries include: providing public sector specialists with initial training; adjusting consecutive education to the provisions of the Bologna Declaration; ensuring continuing professional development of specialists involved in educational activities in preschool institutions; implementing the European conception of professional training with the use of competency-based approach.

In the modern world, which is characterised by migration processes, ethnic and cultural mixing, the interest of representatives of various fields of knowledge to the category of ethnicity, ethnic processes, their historical, cultural, philosophical and linguistic component is growing. In this regard, the work is devoted to studying the dynamics of representations of ethnicity in different types of discursive practices and identifying the specifics of conceptualisation of ethnicity in English-speaking society in the context of ideological, socio-economic and socio-cultural transformations of the second half of the 20th – early 21st century. The relevance of the study is due to the inclusion of the dynamics of language development and change in such areas of modern linguistics as ethnolinguistics, linguocultural studies and discourse analysis, as well as growing interest in the evolution of language, lexical structure of English and changes in the English world picture with the development of ethnic culture, the synthesis of language modifications in the context of global socio-cultural transformations. The following methods were used in the work: definition analysis; comparative analysis; quantitative analysis; analysis-discourse; hypothetical-deductive method; generalisation; systematisation. The research methods used in the article made it possible to substantiate the principles of material selection for studying the dynamics of ethnic representations in English dictionaries; to reveal the concepts of ethnic stereotype and ethnonym-nickname as ways of stereotyping; to characterise the concept of political correctness as relevant for the study of linguistic construction of ethnicity. The dynamics of the representation of ethnicity in the lexicographic discourse on the material of British dictionaries of two times cross-sections (mid-20th century and modern latest edition) in the context of socio-cultural transformations were analysed. The practical value of the work is that the obtained results contribute to a fuller understanding of the English-language picture of the world, deepen scientific ideas about the interaction of ideology, language, culture.

The purpose of the academic paper lies in assessing the state of formation of future economists’ professional competence within the conditions of the adaptive-digital environment of a higher educational institution. Methodology. The level of digitalization of higher educational institutions in Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany, and France has been assessed in the research. Based on the OECD database, the skills of specialists needed in the labor markets in different countries have been evaluated. Results. Within the countries, significant differences are observed in the level of digitalization, which will determine and influence the competence of a future specialist. The development of digital technologies in the HEI poses a threat and causes developing various groups of students - future economists’ skills. In practical activities, an economist should possess highly developed technical, digital, and mathematical skills. The lack of critical thinking skills among specialists (0,245 in the Czech Republic and 0,255 in Germany) or active learning is particularly acute. This means that the development of this skill requires time, which is limited within the conditions of digitalization of higher education. The lack of social skills developing the professional competence of economists has been also observed in the Czech Republic, France, and Germany.