Key words: quality assurance in education, external evaluation mechanisms, quality of education, monitoring process, accountability system.
Summary
The main expectation of the state, society and students from the education system is to provide high-quality education. The main goal of the reforms implemented in the field of education is to achieve an increase in the quality indicators of education. In modern education systems, mechanisms aimed at ensuring quality play an important role in increasing the efficiency of education, strengthening transparency and accountability, as well as ensuring sustainable development. Among these mechanisms, external evaluation acts as one of the main tools in the formation of an objective and independent approach to the activities of educational institutions. The article examines the concept of quality assurance in education, the essence, functional features and forms of external evaluation, application mechanisms in international practice, as well as the current situation in Azerbaijan from a scientific and theoretical perspective. The results of the study show that external evaluation does not only carry a control function, but is also an important mechanism serving the development of educational institutions.
