MRS Jou nal o Mul idisciplina y Resea ch and S udies
Abb e ia e Ti le- MRS J Mul Res S ud
ISSN (Online) 3049-1398
Vol-2, Iss-11 (No embe -2025)
This is an open access a icle unde he CC BY-NC license 40
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN TRADITIONAL EDUCATION AND COMPETENCЕ-
ORIENTED EDUCATION – OPINION OF STUDENTS FROM PEDAGOGICAL
DISCIPLINES
D . Blaga Dimo a*
Bu gas S a e Uni e si y “P o . D- Assen Zla a o .” Republic o Bulga ia
Co esponding Au ho : D . Blaga Dimo a (Bu gas S a e Uni e si y “P o . D- Assen Zla a o .” Republic o Bulga ia)
A icle His o y: Recei ed: 03 / 08 / 2025:, Accep ed: 11 / 11 / 2025:, Published: 20 / 11 / 2025
Abs ac : The s udy explo es he di e ences be ween adi ional educa ion (TE) and compe ence-o ien ed educa ion (COE) om he
pe spec i e o s uden s en olled in pedagogical disciplines a Bu gas S a e Uni e si y “P o . D . Assen Zla a o .” In he con ex o
Bulga ian educa ional mode niza ion, COE is inc easingly ecognized as a dynamic al e na i e o he s a ic and au ho i a ian me hods
o TE. The esea ch employs a quali a i e su ey wi h open-ended ques ions, allowing 32 s uden s om p eschool and p ima y school
pedagogy p og ams o eely exp ess hei opinions a e comple ing he cou se “De elopmen o scien i ic and social compe ences.”
The indings e eal ha TE is pe cei ed as cen alized, heo e ical, and ocused on o e memo iza ion, wi h limi ed p ac ical
applica ion, weak dialogue, and low mo i a ion. In con as , COE is associa ed wi h lexibili y, ac i e pa icipa ion, c i ical hinking,
p ojec -based lea ning, and he acquisi ion o las ing skills ele an o eal-li e si ua ions. S uden s emphasize he ole o he eache as
a acili a o who encou ages collabo a ion, dialogue, and c ea i i y. C i icisms o he cu en Bulga ian sys em include excessi e
heo e ical aining, ou da ed me hods, lack o digi aliza ion, insu icien a en ion o men al heal h, and an o e loaded schedule ha
nega i ely a ec s mo i a ion and well-being. The s udy concludes ha a sys emic ans o ma ion is necessa y, shi ing om o mal,
au ho i a ian p ac ices owa d a compe ence-o ien ed model ha ensu es sus ainable de elopmen , highe mo i a ion, and be e
p epa a ion o young people o p o essional and ci ic li e.
Keywo ds: compe ence, compe ence app oach, adi ional educa ion, compe ence-o ien ed educa ion, di e ences.
Ci e his a icle: Dimo a, B. (2025). DIFFERENCES BETWEEN TRADITIONAL EDUCATION AND COMPETENCЕ-
ORIENTED EDUCATION – OPINION OF STUDENTS FROM PEDAGOGICAL DISCIPLINES. MRS Jou nal o Mul idisciplina y
Resea ch and S udies, 2(11),40-43. h ps://doi.o g/10.5281/zenodo.17656721
INTRODUCTION
In mode n pedagogical heo y and p ac ice, he compe encе
app oach is es ablished as one o he mos dynamically de eloping
di ec ions. In he Bulga ian con ex , i s in oduc ion is di ec ly
ela ed o he p ocesses o mode niza ion aimed a p epa ing school
s uden s o eal li e, a building sel -de e mina ion skills and a
o ming eadiness o pe o m a wide ange o social and pe sonal
unc ions.
This end leads o a change in he way he esul s o he
educa ional p ocess a e assessed. T adi ional ca ego ies such as
“educa ion”, “upb inging” and “p epa edness” a e g adually gi ing
way o new concep s – “compe ence”. As M. Mohzana emphasizes
in his s udy, educa ion in he 21s cen u y “has inc easingly
ocused on equipping s uden s wi h compe ences ha ex end
beyond con en memo iza ion” [1]. Compe ence-o ien ed educa ion
is no an en i ely new phenomenon and is no o eign o he
Bulga ian educa ional adi ion. One o he main objec i es o he
Law on P e-school and School Educa ion is p ecisely“ he
acquisi ion o compe ences necessa y o success ul pe sonal and
p o essional ealiza ion and ac i e ci ic li e in con empo a y
communi ies“ [2]. This ou lines a s a egic ask o he
de elopmen o educa ion – upda ing con en and eaching me hods
and achie ing a new quali y o esul s.
In iew o his, he e is a need o s udy he pe cep ions o
s uden s in eache aining p og ams – he u u e eache s who will
be he agen s o change. Thei opinions on he di e ences be ween
adi ional and compe ence-o ien ed educa ion p o ide aluable
in o ma ion on he di ec ion o he sys em's de elopmen and he
need o a comp ehensi e ans o ma ion owa ds a mo e lexible,
suppo i e, and eal-skills-o ien ed educa ional en i onmen .
METHODOLOGY
The esea ch ocus o his s udy is aimed a acking he
opinions o s uden s s udying in pedagogical special ies a Bu gas
S a e Uni e si y “P o . D . Assen Zla a o ” ega ding he
di e ences be ween adi ional educa ion and compe ence-o ien ed
educa ion in he Republic o Bulga ia.
The main asks o he s udy a e:
o e eal he heo e ical aspec s o he concep s:
compe ence, compe ence app oach, compe ence-o ien ed
educa ion
MRS Jou nal o Mul idisciplina y Resea ch and S udies. Vol-2, Iss-11 (No embe ): 40-43
41
o in es iga e he opinions o s uden s – u u e educa o s
ega ding he di e ences be ween adi ional educa ion
and compe ence-o ien ed educa ion in he Republic o
Bulga ia
o analyze he esul s ob ained.
The su ey uses quali a i e ques ions aimed a in es iga ing he
pe sonal opinions o he s uden s. The ques ions a e open, wi hou
p e-se judgmen s o answe s, which allows pa icipan s o eely
exp ess hei iews, expe iences and a i udes. The esea ch
me hod is a su ey, wi h he emphasis on he quali a i e analysis o
he da a ob ained.
Using he su ey me hod, da a we e collec ed and analyzed
on he opinions o s uden s s udying in pedagogical special ies and
s udying he discipline “De elopmen o scien i ic and social
compe ences” ega ding he main di e ences be ween adi ional
educa ion and compe ence-o ien ed educa ion in he Republic o
Bulga ia.
The s udy was ca ied ou wi h a pa ially s anda dized
au ho ’s su ey, including six closed and open ques ions. This
scien i ic pape p esen s pa o his s udy. A o al o 32 s uden s
om he special ies “P eschool Pedagogy”, “P eschool and
P ima y School Pedagogy”, in which he discipline “De elopmen
o scien i ic and social compe encies” is manda o y o s udy in he
cu iculum, pa icipa ed in he su ey. The su ey was conduc ed
a e he comple ion o he lec u e cou se on he discipline.
DISCUSSION
Be o e conside ing he essence o compe ence-o ien ed
educa ion (COE), i is necessa y o cla i y he con en o he
concep o “compe ence” and “compe ence app oach”, since i is
compe ence ha is a he hea o his app oach.
In he scien i ic li e a u e, he e a e nume ous de ini ions
ha e lec di e en heo e ical and p ac ical pe spec i es. Wha
hey ha e in common is he emphasis on he indi idual’s abili y o
in eg a e knowledge, skills and a i udes and o apply hem
e ec i ely in a a ie y o si ua ions.
In he Eu opean Quali ica ions F amewo k compe ence is
de ined as “ he demons a ed abili y o use knowledge, skills and
pe sonal, social and/o me hodological asse s in wo k o lea ning
si ua ions and in p o essional and pe sonal de elopmen ” [3].
John Ra en, in his book “Compe ence in Mode n Socie y,”
de ines he e m “componen s o compe ence” as “cha ac e is ics
and abili ies o people ha allow hem o achie e pe sonally
signi ican goals, ega dless o he na u e o hose goals and he
social s uc u e in which hey li e and wo k” [4]. The e a e
nume ous de ini ions o he concep o “compe ence app oach” in
he аcademic esea ch, which can be educed o a simila de ini ion
by Khu o sky, acco ding o whom he o ma ion o key
compe encies in lea ne s as a esul o he educa ional p ocess is
called a compe ency app oach [5]. Acco ding o Spence and
Spence , he compe encе app oach emphasizes he alidi y o he
c i e ia: i is impo an ha hey ac ually lead o he bes
pe o mance o he ac i i y, and no be limi ed o ac o s ha
simply desc ibe he cha ac e is ics o he pe son in he hope ha
some o hem will be ele an o he esul s [6].
Compe ence-o ien ed educa ion has es ablished i sel as
one o he mos signi ican ends in pedagogical heo y and
p ac ice in ecen decades. I appea s in a ious o ms, and he e m
and concep ha e been ac i ely used since he 1960s.
The analysis o pedagogical li e a u e shows ha he e is no
uni ied opinion on he concep o COE. Di e en au ho s de ine i
in di e en ways – some emphasize he p ac ical applicabili y o
knowledge, o he s on he de elopmen o key skills and a i udes,
and s ill o he s associa e i wi h he change o he educa ional
pa adigm in mode n socie y. Acco ding o J. Ge ais, i is p ecisely
his di e si y o in e p e a ions ha c ea es a need o concep ual
cla i y. The e o e, she inds i impe a i e o c ea e a uni e sal
de ini ion o COE, which would p o ide a common heo e ical
amewo k and acili a e i s p ac ical applica ion in di e en
educa ional con ex s. A e a ho ough e iew o he scien i ic
li e a u e, he de ines compe encе-o ien ed educa ion as an
ou come-based app oach ha includes me hods o eaching and
assessing he quali y o educa ion h ough he demons a ion by
lea ne s o knowledge, a i udes, alues, skills and beha io al
pa e ns consis en wi h he s anda d o he ele an s age o le el
o educa ion. She also emphasizes ha he heo e ical ounda ions
o COE a e ound in lea ning heo y, which shows he ela ionship
be ween pedagogical concep s and hei p ac ical applica ion [7].
Acco ding o S. Veliko a compe ence-o ien ed educa ion p o ides
a sus ainable ounda ion o he o ma ion o key skills o he 21s
cen u y, necessa y o ull pa icipa ion in social and economic li e
in condi ions o challenges, unce ain y and new oppo uni ies [8].
A. Ta mo and A. Kima o examine compe ence-o ien ed
educa ion in he con ex o human esou ce managemen .
Acco ding o hem, his model is a key ac o in he ans o ma ion
o he educa ion sys em, as i p epa es g adua es o he upcoming
challenges o he labo ma ke [9]. The heo e ical e iew ou lines
he main cha ac e is ics o compe ence-o ien ed educa ion. In o de
o cla i y he ex en o which hese ideas a e e lec ed in he
Bulga ian educa ional sys em, he opinion o s uden s o
pedagogical disciplines a Bu gas S a e Uni e si y "P o . D . Assen
Zla a o ", Republic o Bulga ia, was su eyed o di e ences
be ween adi ional educa ion and compe encе-o ien ed educa ion.
FINDINGS
As pa o a su ey conduc ed among s uden s o
pedagogical disciplines, in o ma ion was collec ed ega ding hei
pe cep ions o he di e ences be ween adi ional and compe ency-
o ien ed educa ion. Figu e 1 p esen s he main di e ences be ween
he wo ypes o educa ion, summa ized by key cha ac e is ics. The
able g oups hese ea u es in o hema ic a eas, de i ed h ough a
meaning ul analysis o he s uden s' esponses, which e lec hei
pe sonal obse a ions and c i ical a i ude owa ds exis ing
educa ional p ac ices.
MRS Jou nal o Mul idisciplina y Resea ch and S udies. Vol-2, Iss-11 (No embe ): 40-43
42
Figu e 1. Di e ences be ween adi ional educa ion and
compe ence-o ien ed educa ion
Sou ce: Blaga Dimo a. All igh s ese ed
Se e al signi ican esul s can be de i ed om he able,
which e lec he s uden s' pe cep ions o he di e ences be ween
he wo educa ional app oaches. Acco ding o hem, adi ional
educa ion is cha ac e ized by cen alized managemen , a passi e
ole o he s uden , heo e ical and uni o m eaching me hods, and a
weak connec ion wi h p ac ice. Assessmen in i is o mal and
o ien ed owa ds memo izing con en , and communica ion be ween
eache and s uden is one-way and o en subjec o au ho i y.
Mo i a ion is usually low, o en in luenced by ea and ex e nal
con ol, and he acqui ed knowledge is sho -li ed and easily
o go en.
On he o he hand, compe ence-o ien ed educa ion is
pe cei ed as mo e lexible, engaging and ailo ed o he indi idual
needs o school s uden s. They emphasize he impo ance o ac i e
pa icipa ion, c i ical hinking, p ojec wo k and he applica ion o
knowledge in eal-li e si ua ions. In his model, he eache plays
he ole o a acili a o who suppo s lea ning h ough dialogue,
collabo a ion and he c ea ion o a s imula ing en i onmen .
Teaching me hods a e in e ac i e and a ied, inco po a ing games,
eamwo k and p ac ical ac i i ies ha s eng hen he connec ion
be ween heo y and p ac ice. Assessmen is compe ency-o ien ed
and wo-way, in ol ing bo h eache and school s uden , while
communica ion is dialogic and encou ages mu ual espec .
Mo i a ion is high, d i en by ele ance and in e es , and he main
ou come is he acquisi ion o las ing compe encies and skills ha
p epa e s uden s o pa icipa ion in eal li e.
Agains he backg ound o he dis inc ion be ween
adi ional and compe ency-o ien ed educa ion, i was impo an o
es ablish wha c i icisms u u e educa o s make o he cu en
educa ion sys em in he Republic o Bulga ia. In o de o moni o
he ex en o which cu en p ac ices mee con empo a y
pedagogical p inciples and expec a ions acco ding o s uden s, he
ques ion was in es iga ed: “Wha do you dislike abou he
cu en educa ion sys em in Bulga ia?”. Pa icipan s had he
oppo uni y o eely exp ess hei opinion h ough open-ended
quali a i e ques ions. The analysis o hei answe s ou lined a
numbe o sys emic p oblems ha , acco ding o u u e educa o s,
hinde e ec i e lea ning and s uden de elopmen .
Main p oblems iden i ied by s uden s:
Excessi e heo e ical aining
The lea ning p ocess is o ien ed owa ds memo iza ion wi hou
ensu ing p ac ical applica ion o knowledge.
Ro e lea ning ins ead o unde s anding
S uden s o en memo ize in o ma ion mechanically wi hou
making sense o i , which leads o supe icial knowledge.
Ea ly s a o he school day
Acco ding o s uden s, his leads o a igue, lack o concen a ion
and di icul y in unde s anding he ma e ial.
Hea y backpacks and an o e loaded schedule
Physical and men al s ain nega i ely a ec s s uden s' heal h and
mo i a ion.
Too many ules and es ic ions
S ic egula ions supp ess c ea i i y and eedom o exp ession.
Fea and ension in he class oom
Lack o us be ween s uden s and eache s leads o di icul
communica ion and ea o exp essing an opinion.
Ou da ed eaching me hods
Insu icien use o inno a i e app oaches and echnologies makes
aining ine ec i e and bo ing.
Lack o young s a
The p edominance o olde eache s who ha e di icul y accep ing
changes makes i di icul o mode nize he sys em.
Lack o dialogue be ween eache and s uden
Weak eedback and one-way communica ion lead o aliena ion and
demo i a ion.
Excessi e homewo k and es wo kload
S uden s a e subjec ed o cons an s ess, which nega i ely a ec s
hei men al heal h.
Ea ly ca ee choice
The equi emen o choose a p o ile a e he 7 h g ade is p ema u e
and does no ake in o accoun he ma u i y o s uden s.
Insu icien p ac ical aining
The e is a lack o p ojec s, expe imen s and ex acu icula
ac i i ies ha de elop eal skills.
Fo mal assessmen
The sys em measu es momen a y knowledge wi hou aking in o
accoun he p og ess and compe encies o s uden s.
Lack o digi aliza ion and inno a ion
MRS Jou nal o Mul idisciplina y Resea ch and S udies. Vol-2, Iss-11 (No embe ): 40-43
43
Teache s a ely use mode n echnologies, which limi s access o
cu en esou ces.
Insu icien a en ion o men al heal h
The emo ional s a e o s uden s o en emains neglec ed, al hough
i is key o hei de elopmen .
CONCLUSION
The analysis o he opinions o u u e eache s ou lines a
numbe o sys emic weaknesses in he cu en educa ion sys em o
he Republic o Bulga ia. The main c i icisms a e di ec ed a
excessi e heo e icali y, mechanical lea ning, ou da ed eaching
me hods, and he lack o p ac ical o ien a ion. Addi ionally, ac o s
such as he ea ly s a o he school day, he o e loaded p og am,
hea y backpacks, and excessi e homewo k c ea e physical and
men al s ess, which nega i ely a ec s he mo i a ion and heal h o
s uden s.
The lack o dialogue be ween eache and school s uden ,
he absence o young s a and insu icien a en ion o men al
heal h u he deepen he p oblems and lead o aliena ion and low
e iciency o educa ion. Insu icien digi aliza ion and inno a ion
limi access o mode n esou ces and oppo uni ies o he
de elopmen o compe encies needed in eal li e.
All his shows ha he exis ing sys em needs a comple e
ans o ma ion om o mal and au ho i a ian-o ien ed educa ion o
a mo e lexible, compe ency-o ien ed, and suppo i e en i onmen .
As Y. Bu o a no es, any o m o compe ence-o ien ed educa ion,
upda ed acco ding o he needs o mode n socie y, is es ablishing
i sel as a dynamic al e na i e o he s a ic and ou da ed me hods o
he adi ional app oach [10]. Such a change would ensu e highe
mo i a ion, las ing knowledge, and skills, as well as be e
compliance wi h mode n pedagogical p inciples and s uden s'
needs. In his con ex , compe ency-o ien ed educa ion eme ges as
he mos p omising al e na i e, capable o gua an eeing sus ainable
de elopmen o educa ion and success ul p epa a ion o young
people o he challenges o li e and hei p o essional ealiza ion.
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