INSTITUTIONAL AUDIT AS A TOOL FOR PUBLIC MANAGEMENT OF THE EFFICIENCY OF GENERAL SECONDARY EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

Abstract

The article carries out a comprehensive study of institutional audit as a modern tool for public management of the effectiveness of the functioning of general secondary education institutions. In the context of the transformation of the educational system of Ukraine and the implementation of the principles of the New Ukrainian School, the need to introduce effective mechanisms for ensuring the quality of education is becoming more urgent, among which institutional audit occupies a leading place. The regulatory and legal support for the institutional audit procedure is analyzed, in particular the Law of Ukraine «On Education», the Regulations on Institutional Audit and the Procedure for its Conduct. The audit structure, data collection tools, evaluation criteria and the nature of management decisions formed based on the audit results are disclosed. Based on the reports of the State Education Quality Service of Ukraine for 2024, a summary of the results of the evaluation of educational and management processes in the State Education Quality Service of Ukraine was carried out. It was revealed that the issues of the educational environment, the system for assessing learning outcomes and the organization of internal monitoring require special attention. The system of planning activities and development strategies of general secondary education institutions need to be improved. The need to organize the educational process on the principles of human-centrism, to make management decisions based on constructive cooperation between participants in the educational process and interaction between the educational institution and the local community is noted. The key areas of influence of institutional audit on increasing the efficiency of management in the education system are outlined. In particular, its role in improving strategic planning, optimizing personnel policy, establishing effective interaction with the bodies of the founders and other stakeholders is emphasized. It is emphasized that institutional audit, provided it is properly perceived not as a control tool, but as a constructive support mechanism, contributes to the development of a management culture based on the values of quality, transparency, responsibility and sustainable development. It provides feedback, provides substantiated recommendations for strategic changes, stimulates systemic selfassessment and internal improvement of educational institutions, which is especially important in the context of the autonomy and decentralization of education management.