Abstract
The article is a follow-up to the general overview of the transformation process in education; it operates with the term competence that defines new educational qualities. It provides review of environmental connotations of the term; the range of educational objectives related to the understanding of competences as complex (including cognitive, affective and psychomotor aspect) outcomes of the educational process that show its quality in action is being discussed.
Underdeveloped theory of this new outcome of the educational process has negative impact on clarity and practical usability of the concept: its consequences for evaluation and assessment are still relatively vague.