Assessment of the Readiness of Graduates of Organizations for Orphans and Children Left without Parental Care, and Graduates of Foster Families for an Independent Life: a Review and Analysis of Regional Practices

Abstract

The problem of assessing the readiness of graduates of various forms of guardianship for independent life is associated with the lack of regulatory regulation of activities for the support of orphans and persons from among them in federal legislation and in the legislation of a number of regions of the Russian Federation. There is neither a unified approach to assessing readiness for independent living, nor a unified terminology base, which significantly complicates the development and improvement of assessment methods. The article presents the results of monitoring programs for the preparation of pupils of organizations for orphans for independent life, conducting an assessment of readiness in the subjects of the Russian Federation and describes the current state of the problem of readiness of graduates of organizations for orphans and graduates of substitute families in different regions, provided by the Department of State Policy in the field of Protection of Children’s Rights of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation. Specialists from 78 regions participated in the study, for which a special questionnaire was developed. The analysis of the obtained data showed that there are several approaches used in the practice of assessing the readiness of graduates by regions: a psychodiagnostic approach, a behavioral and competence approach. In the analysis, we relied on the understanding of the assessment of readiness for independent life through the correlation of the formed life competencies with the requirements that are imposed on graduates and with those indicators that determine the ability to apply the relevant competencies in the right situations. If educational programs, readiness criteria have been developed in organizations for orphans and work is being carried out, then in relation to teenagers who are in substitute families, it is assumed that they will naturally prepare for life in the post-international period in the family or they will undergo career guidance at school. According to the results of monitoring, such a statement of the question is questionable. The prospects of the study are related to the development of a system for assessing the readiness of graduates for independent living, the standard for preparing graduates of organizations for orphans and substitute families to live independently.