Abstract
The study purpose is to analyze formation and development of the professional technical education system in Poland during the 16th - 19th centuries in the general context of socio-economic changes taking place in Europe at that time. The research methodology is based on combination of heuristic approach and historical reconstruction of the events under study. A historical-systemic analysis of the organization of professional technical education in Poland was applied based on a retrospective study of the main educational trends of that time in the context of key socio-political events. The scientific novelty lies in the implementation of integrated comparative analysis of the almost four-hundred-year (16th – 19th centuries) evolution of the Polish system of professional training of specialists in technical specialties in the context of pan-European educational trends. The study highlights the provisions on general trends in the organization of professional education in contemporary Poland, as well as its ability to function effectively and accumulate human capital in the conditions of changing economy. Conclusions. Historical and pedagogical analysis of the development of the professional technical education system in Poland during the 16th - 19th centuries in the general context of European socio-economic changes allowed the authors to identify its institutional and structural changes, assess the factors of efficiency and compliance with contemporary approaches to the organization of professional training. The authors prove that professional technical education in Poland as a social institution developed historically due to the significant influence of socio-economic reasons and material production and evolved in accordance with changes in organization of social life at different stages of the country’s historical development. The most important period in the overall evolution of Polish education was the second half of the 18th century, but the first quarter of the 19th century was crucial for the development of professional technical education, when the separation of educational institutions with a polytechnic or special vocational orientation began. The most difficult times for Polish professional education undoubtedly came after the defeat of the uprisings of 1830 – 1831 and 1863 – 1864.