Training Of Primary School Teachers Research Articles

Teachers’ understanding of programming and computational thinking in primary education – A critical need for professional development

Programming and computational thinking have (re)gained an increased focus in com­pulsory education worldwide, consequently demanding teachers of various subjects to engage in the teaching and learning of the two. A recent curriculum reform in Norway emphasised the development of students’ computational skills by integrating pro­gramming into four subject domains: mathematics, natural science, music, and arts and crafts. However, these requirements come without a necessary professional develop­ment programme and are based on the presumption that all concerned teachers under­stand the concepts of programming and computational thinking and know how to teach these skills in a sound pedagogical and didactical way. Therefore, this study investigated how teachers understand programming and computational thinking and the relationship between the two concepts. We also investigated the teachers’ approaches to teaching these concepts and their need for further professional development. To address these issues, we conducted semi-structured interviews with eight primary school teachers and thematically analysed the data. Overall, the teachers reported positive attitudes towards the new curriculum and its focus on 21st-century skills, including programming and computational thinking. However, their understanding of these concepts was narrow, focused on only one of the six pertinent subskills: algorithms. Furthermore, the teachers’ teaching approaches were limited. Finally, we observed a variety of professional development processes and practices. The teachers accentuated a critical need for pro­fessional development within these domains. Our findings showed that to fulfil the curricular expectations of developing students’ computational thinking skills, increased training of primary school teachers is needed.

Responses to the Socio-Ecological Crisis: Perceptions of In-Service Teacher

The teacher's response to the problem of the socio-ecological crisis becomes important and urgent as an effort to increase teachers' sensitivity, willingness and ability to identify potential and socio-ecological problems that exist in the school environment and the surrounding area.Therefore, this study aims to analyze how teachers participating in in-service teacher training, called Teacher Professional Education (PPG), perceive socio-ecological issues. This study aims to analyze the teacher's perception of the socio-ecological crisis. This study uses a quantitative analysis approach with a survey method. The population in this study were 102 teachers participating in the Teacher Professional Education Program (PPG) primary school teacher training program, with a sample of 96 people. Data collection uses a questionnaire with an electronic google form format. The data analysis technique used descriptive statistics. The research results on teacher perceptions support the inclusion of socio-ecological crisis material in environmental learning in schools and PPG in in-service teacher training positions. In conclusion, although teachers still practice caring and environmentally friendly habits in schools, teachers have paid attention to the importance of critical environmental learning, outdoor learning, collective, and environmental problems in preventing and overcoming socio-ecological. The implication is that teachers are expected to gain many dimensions and critical environmental perspectives in responding to social-ecological problems.

On the Two Types of Resources for Innovative Primary School Teacher Training

In the article, the authors substantiate the approach to educational innovations as different types of resources - human and technological. Moreover, the concept of “innovation” is understood by the authors in a broad sense: these are objects, phenomena and trends that emerged recently, experienced unexpected development or require urgent changes. The authors discuss the role of human non-technogenic innovation resources and their prospects in personal and organizational-methodological meaning. The purpose of the article is to outline the prospects for the development of an innovative personality for future teachers and demonstrate them some zones of potential occurrence of innovations. The relevance of the study is due to the fact that the educational technologies gradually drive out the teacher from the main role which threatens education, that has always been anthropomorphic, rather than technocentric. Methods. During the study, philosophical metaphysical methods were used, in particular the method of “monologic debate”, reflection on global trends in education. From more specific methods, an analysis of educational processes, generalization and modelling of possible educational consequences were used. This made it possible to outline possible directions of personal innovative growth of the teacher in the context of global changes (presented in Table 1). The result of the article. The authors also investigated Ukrainian and foreign scientific literature on the topic and evaluated it from the point of view of pragmatics and axiology. They also proved a thesis about the new ontological essence of educational and teacher innovation: the change of social and educational environments, the development of electronic technologies force to modify not so much the environment as the professional self-identification of the teacher, the specifics of their resources, professional and ontological “self”. Now the institutional resource support has become less important for the teacher, and the subjectivity comes to the fore, which actively uses innovative resources and is the source thereof. The international significance of the article is explained by the global crisis of the educational values, substitution of the anthropomorphic image of education with hi-tech, which should attract the attention of all civilized humanity.

ЗДОРОВ’ЯЗБЕРЕЖУВАЛЬНА КОМПЕТЕНТНІСТЬ ЯК СКЛАДОВА ПРОФЕСІЙНОЇ КОМПЕТЕНТНОСТІ МАЙБУТНЬОГО ВЧИТЕЛЯ ПОЧАТКОВОЇ ШКОЛИ

The article deals with the problem of building health-preserving competences in future primary school teachers. The aims of the article are to study the relationship between general and health-preserving competences during the professional training of future primary school teachers, and determination of the content and essence of health-preserving competence, as well as technologies of its building in terms of higher educational institutions. The research used methods of summarizing and systematizing data on the content and structure of the teacher’s professional competence, and health-preserving competence of the future primary school teacher; as well as methods of interpolation and modelling in determining the content of health-preserving technologies. The role of health-preserving competences in building children’s healthy lifestyle skills is shown. The issues of building the competences are presented in a logical relationship in line with the scheme: competence – professional competence – pedagogical competence – health-preserving competence. The relationship between these competences has been considered, and each of them has been characterized. The ideas of researchers regarding the essence and content of competence have been supported and expanded. Most academics believe that “competence” encompasses the knowledge, skills and abilities, as well as the techniques and methods required for a particular activity. Foreign scholars understand competence as a person’s ability to apply their knowledge in practice, and to have certain experience, which the specialist has acquired as a result of practical activities. Researchers distinguish general and professional competences. General competence is understood as the functional essence of a person’s general culture, while professional competence refers to the professional culture of a specialist, and the content of their professionalism. The main structural components of professional competence have been defined, namely professionally content-based, professionally active, as well as professional and personal ones. It has been emphasized that the effectiveness of building future specialists’ professional competence depends on the applied methodological approaches and principles. It has been established that health-preserving competences are based on the concept of “health”. The concept of “health” in the context of research includes such types as physical, mental, social and spiritual ones. The need for the implementation of health-preserving technologies is confirmed by statistical data. Thus, the share of healthy Ukrainian children is from 4 to 10%. The role of the teacher in building health-preserving competences is defined, as well as their integral personal qualities, the basis for which is knowledge and experience regarding readiness for health-preserving activities in the educational environment. The expediency of application of a system of health-preserving educational technologies, health-improving technologies, and technologies for teaching a healthy lifestyle has been substantiated. The leading role of the use of personally focused, humanistic oriented, innovative and informational pedagogical technologies in building health-preserving competences of the future teacher has been emphasized. It was concluded that this process should be carried out on the basis of the provisions of systemic, activity-based, axiological, integrative, and epistemological methodological approaches.

Effectiveness of the Pedagogical System of Training Future Primary School Teachers to Use Innovative Technologies: Research Results

The purpose of the article is to theoretically substantiate the peculiarities of forming the readiness of future primary school teachers to use innovative technologies. Among the research methods used, the following were decisive: analysis, generalization, experiment, questionnaires, expert evaluation, and observation. Results. In today's conditions, the driving force in the field of education is the use of innovative pedagogical technologies of learning and education, which satisfy the didactic requirements for ensuring the educational process. The training of a new generation of primary school teachers, who are able to depart from traditional forms and methods of working with students and at the same time perceive and extrapolate new pedagogical experience, new technologies, forms and methods of work in their professional activities, is aimed at realizing the need to create a positive educational environment by activating intellectual and sensory and emotional resources of each student. That is why there is a need to use appropriate pedagogical technologies in professional education. This, in turn, actualizes the need to include appropriate content in the subject-methodical training of future primary school teachers, requires rethinking and searching for new organizational forms and methods of training that would improve its quality and effectiveness, expand and deepen the content of professional training. This is due to the latest trends in the development of social, interstate, and cultural relations in the field of professional and pedagogical training of specialists and is the subject of special attention of the state, which is reflected in the main documents that determine the priorities of the educational policy of Ukraine: the laws of Ukraine «On Education», «On Higher Education» , «On the national informatization program», state programs «Information and communication technologies in education and science» for 2006-2010, Concept of implementation of state policy in the field of general secondary education reform «New Ukrainian school» for the period until 2029, Concept of media implementation of education in Ukraine (2010), Strategy for the development of the information society in Ukraine (2013), etc. So, the result of professional training of future teachers is the readiness to use pedagogical technologies in professional activities, which is determined by the actual problem of pedagogical science and practice. Conclusions. The author formulates general conclusions and recommendations for the implementation of theoretical and practical results of the study in the educational process of pedagogical universities, and identifies prospects for further research in the field of the problem under study.

Training of future primary school teachers for using innovative technologies

The article deals with the problem of developing the ability of future primary school teachers to innovative activity. The purpose of the article is based on self-reflection of the experience of training future teachers of primary education for the implementation of pedagogical innovations to substantiate some constructive ways of formative influence on the process of developing their business reputation in the outlined plane. Results. In the context of the analysis of the approaches that have developed in modern pedagogical science, not only the realities of today regarding the uniqueness of the student of higher education, European integration processes and the multifunctionality of education as a field are considered, but also the latest ideas about the purely innovative content of the teacher's professional activity. The scientific status of the concept of «creative thinking» among relatives (such as «independent thinking») has been clarified. The nature of the attitude of future primary school teachers to the innovative vector of the professional activity of a modern teacher is specified. The expediency of the process of training students for the implementation of innovative professional activities as a system, in which the system-forming value is given to the development of a positive and active attitude of future primary school teachers to pedagogical innovations, to the awareness at the level of conviction of their unsurpassed significance in the conditions of the «tuning fork market of European integration educational transformations, has been proven. Conclusions. As a result of the self-reflection of the experience of formation of innovative competence among students of higher education, the constructiveness of the student’s free choice educational discipline «Innovative technologies of teaching educational branches in primary school» was ascertained. This approach has been tested at the Izmail State University of Humanities and proves the essentiality of its compensatory value and motivation for spreading it in university practice. The author concluded that the active involvement of teachers in innovative activities requires appropriate scientific and pedagogical support; the educational process of higher education institutions is an important factor in stimulating both the interest of students in the latest technologies and the improvement of their professional culture regarding the implementation of innovative activities. The author added that self-reflection of the experience developed in the above-described perspective convinces of the urgent need to consider the scientific and practical support for the development of innovative competence among students as a pedagogical system.

Training of future teachers through teaching pedagogical technologies

The research paper aims to address the issue of professional training of future primary school teachers, who will ensure quality education based on the new curriculum by developing their professional competencies. In the research work, the results of questionnaires applied to schoolteachers and students of this specialty were compared and analyzed. The analytical analysis considers the theoretical and methodological issues of increasing the quality of education by introducing alternative subjects into the educational program of the specialty in the higher educational institution, to improve the mastery of pedagogical technologies and the ability to use them in the pedagogical process of the teacher in the training of future primary school teachers. Based on this, a model project for training future primary school students is considered. The model substantiates the problems of being guided by didactic requirements of pedagogical processes organized in each primary class.
 Keywords: Specialty, model, pedagogical technologies, quality education, alternative disciplines;

Opportunities for the Formation of University Students’ Digital Competence

The relevance of this article lies in the fact that during the period of the accelerating process of the technological development of society, the active introduction of electronic and distance learning technologies, electronic educational resources, the creation of a digital educational environment, it is necessary to prevent emerging very controversial problems. One of which is the demand for primary school teachers who have the necessary skills to work in a digital educational environment and the urgent need that arises against this background to prepare students and undergraduates for professional activities in accordance with modern educational trends. Thus, the article presents an analysis of the problem of preparing modern undergraduates in the direction “Pedagogical education”, profile “Primary education” for the implementation of their professional activities in the context of creating a unified digital educational environment of elementary school. A study developed on the basis of the methods of K. Zamfir (modified by A. A. Rean), V. I. Andreeva, studies by S. A. Zaitseva, where undergraduates were asked to complete tasks and answer questions related to the organization of a unified digital educational environment in elementary school. The study has made it possible to identify the level of their readiness to use digital technologies in their professional activities that contribute to the creation of a digital educational environment in elementary school. The task of the study was also to identify “gaps” in the process of developing the digital competence of undergraduates and further work to eliminate them, in order to prepare highly qualified specialists with skills that will allow them to independently develop and improve their digital competence and maintain professional mobility. The author of the article offers practical tasks that will improve the level of digital knowledge and skills of undergraduates: knowledge about digital technologies, understanding the possibilities of their use, understanding the essence of the digital transformation of the educational process, the skill of working with information, the ability to work in a unified digital educational environment of elementary school, etc. The research materials can be useful for teachers of universities, secondary vocational education, as well as additional education in organizing the process of professional training of primary school teachers. Keywords: digital transformation of education, digital competence, digital competence, digitalization of the educational process, digital technologies, primary education

Designing Vocabulary Learning Media Through Arts And Crafts For Primary School Teacher Training

Vocabulary in English is a common problem encountered in teaching and learning. This study aims to describe the steps of designing or developing vocabulary learning media using art and crafts. The purpose of this study is to teach primary school teacher training on the third-semester at Achmad Yani University Banjarmasin. This study used classroom action research. This method emphasizes on textbooks, journals and other relevant sources as sources of data and theoretical studies. The variables focused on here include the use of various art and craft activities in vocabulary teaching as independent and the success level of the students to present and participate in their learning English vocabulary.

PREPARATION OF FUTURE PRIMARY TEACHERS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF LANGUAGE OF JUNIOR PUPILS WITH GENERAL LANGUAGE

The article highlights the problem of preparing future primary school teachers for the junior schoolchildren’s speech development with general language underdevelopment. The peculiarities of the manifestation of general underdevelopment of language in younger schoolchildren are considered, and the place and peculiarities of the preparation of future primary school teachers for this work are determined. The concept of “general underdevelopment of language” is revealed. The analysis revealed the general underdevelopment of the speech of students of grades 1‒4. It has been established that in three to four years of study, children with general underdevelopment of the language can master the language at a sufficient level and acquire more or less formed language skills (pronunciation, vocabulary).It has been proven that the work on the development of the language activity of such children is carried out more effectively if the primary school teacher joins in solving this problem, since he communicates with them throughout the school day, as well as outside of school hours.The Standard of Higher Education in specialty 013 “Elementary Education” of the first (bachelorʼs) level of higher education, the curriculum for the training of future primary school teachers was analyzed. It was revealed that the training of future primary school teachers is provided by general humanitarian, socio-economic, mathematical, natural science disciplines, as well as general professional and subject training disciplines. Possibilities of training future teachers for the development of language activities of younger schoolchildren, in particular with children who have general language underdevelopment based on the integration approach, have been established. An integrated interdisciplinary program was created to increase the effectiveness of training future primary school teachers for the development of language activities of younger schoolchildren with general language underdevelopment, which involves the integration of methodical, pedagogical,psychological, speech therapy knowledge.We see the prospect of further investigations in the disclosure of the features of the professional activity of a primary school teacher in the development of speech activity of younger schoolchildren with general language underdevelopment.
 Keywords: training, future teacher; primary school; junior schoolchildren; general underdevelopment of language; interdisciplinary; pedagogical activity; inclusive education; institution of general secondary education.

BASIC TRENDS OF PROFESSIONAL TRAINING OF FUTURE PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN THE CONTEXT OF MODERN CHALLENGES

The relevance of the article is determined by the European integration processes that determine the vectors of dynamic development of our society, in particular, higher education and its important component ‒ the system of professional training of future primary school teachers. The article focuses on the trends of professional training of the future teacher in the context of implementing his partnership interaction with subjects of the educational process. The purpose of the article is to identify and analyze the basic trends in the professional training of the future teacher. The article uses such general scientific research methods as: analysis (of psychological and pedagogical literature, information sources for studying educational trends and views of scientists on the problem under investigation); definitional analysis (in order to determine the essence of the researched category); synthesis, comparison, systematization of scientific sources (to identify the state of development of the problem); generalization (to determine the leading category of research). Three levels of basic trends in the professional training of the future primary school teacher for the implementation of partnership interaction of the subjects of the educational process, which are basic in the professional activity of future specialists, are distinguished: social level trends (European integration, humanization and axiologisation of higher education); trends at the scientific and methodological level (polyparadigmatic and interdisciplinary nature of education); practical level trends (technologicalization of higher education). The identified basic trends determine the priority vectors of professional training of primary school teachers in the context of ideas of partnership pedagogy and significantly influence the formation of the professional quality of future primary school teachers necessary for effective partnership interaction between subjects of the educational process.

THE USE OF HUMOROUS MEDIA PRODUCTS AT PRESCHOOL EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND PRIMARY SCHOOLS

The article reflects the description of application of humorous media products at preschool educational institutions and primary schools from the perspective of the analysis of psychological and pedagogical literature. Humorous media products are viewed as multifunctional media tools used for the development of motivation, thinking, imagination, creativity and communication skills in children. Besides, they serve for the leisure time organization purposes, national-patriotic and moral education, health saving, pedagogical diagnostics, as well as for preventive purposes, in particular to prevent aggressive behavior. Also, the use of humorous media products is considered to be an effective way to reduce the level of stress and anxiety in children in the challenging conditions of military invasion.
 Frequency of application of humorous media products in the interaction with children by the primary school teachers and kindergarten teachers has been diagnosed and analyzed. There have been defined the ways to improve training of future primary school teachers and kindergarten teachers at the institutions of higher education considering the application of humorous media products. They include the following forms: lectures "The problem of humor in the history of pedagogy", "Using humorous media tools for the preschoolers speech development", "Formation of transition skills of primary school students by means analysis of media with humorous potential", "Laughter therapy and health saving of preschool and primary school age children", "Humor therapy in work with children in crisis situations" in the course of study of the disciplines: "Actual problems of preschool education", "Organization of preschoolers game activities", "Introduction to pedagogy”, "Pedagogical technologies at primary school", etc.; methods: interactive, game, project; means: visual (books, periodicals), audial (audio fairy tales, etc.), audiovisual (cartoons).
 Ideas worth to be used at preschool educational institutions and primary schools have been identified. They refer formation of children’s ability to distinguish between jokes and mockery; make jokes only in appropriate situation; to reveal the comic and the serious, the fictional and the real in humorous media products.

An Assessment of Character building in light of National Professional Standards of Public Sector Teachers at Primary Level in District Peshawar

The main objective of the study was to assess the teaching practices of the public sector primary school teachers in light of the national professional standards (NPS) approved by the Ministry of Education (MoE) on 23rd February 2009 in collaboration with the financial support of the USAID. The program was named as STEP which stands for strengthening Teacher Education Program. The study was delimited to only 3rd standard, being related to character building. For data collection, a criteria based Rubric was constructed. Data was collected from 360 public sector primary school teachers of District Peshawar. Collected Data, for selected standard, was analyzed through mean score. Findings of the study showed that majority of the teachers didn’t perform as per investigated Standard. So, it was recommended that Education department should chalk out a widespread program for the training and supervision of public sector primary school teachers regarding Character building of students.

An Assessment of Character building in light of National Professional Standards of Public Sector Teachers at Primary Level in District Peshawar

The main objective of the study was to assess the teaching practices of the public sector primary school teachers in light of the national professional standards (NPS) approved by the Ministry of Education (MoE) on 23rd February 2009 in collaboration with the financial support of the USAID. The program was named as STEP which stands for strengthening Teacher Education Program. The study was delimited to only 3rd standard, being related to character building. For data collection, a criteria based Rubric was constructed. Data was collected from 360 public sector primary school teachers of District Peshawar. Collected Data, for selected standard, was analyzed through mean score. Findings of the study showed that majority of the teachers didn’t perform as per investigated Standard. So, it was recommended that Education department should chalk out a widespread program for the training and supervision of public sector primary school teachers regarding Character building of students.

ФОРМУВАННЯ КОМУНІКАТИВНОЇ КОМПЕТЕНТНОСТІ МАЙБУТНІХ УЧИТЕЛІВ ПОЧАТКОВОЇ ШКОЛИ В УМОВАХ МАГІСТРАТУРИ

Modern society is focused on the growth of various types of interpersonal interaction, including speech communication, which leads to increased requirements for the quality of appropriate training of future primary school teachers, i.e. improvement of communicative competence, which will ensure their active professional activity in the future. The need to update the content of this process is related to various aspects of primary school modernization: the transition to the implementation of the Concept of a new Ukrainian school, support for its humanization, child-centered ideas; implementation of the principles of competency-based and person-oriented approaches in the education of younger schoolchildren, etc. In the social aspect, the importance of researching the communicative competence of primary school teachers is determined by the lack of speech and especially rhetorical culture, both professional and general (culture of thinking, speech, communication). In the pedagogical aspect, its development is aimed at the formation of productive, creative thinking and is based on the ethical principles of morality, and therefore is an important component of the formation of a harmonious personality as the greatest value in a democratic society. In the pedagogical activity of a teacher, communication is professionally significant, as it accompanies all types of work, and therefore the communicative skills of students of the second (master's) level of higher education are determined by the educational and professional program «Initial Education» of the Berdyansk State Pedagogical University: «To communicate in academic Ukrainian in oral and written forms, use communicative strategies, form students' ability for mutual understanding, interpersonal interaction». As evidenced by the results of the initial survey (according to M. Schneider) to identify professional and personal needs in the formation of communicative competence of future primary school teachers, in general, they respond favorably to the methods and techniques that were used in the classes on «Fundamentals of scientific communication and academic culture». At the same time, it was noted that the greatest difficulties for the master's students were caused by exercises of a practice-oriented nature regarding the prediction of the effectiveness of one's own communicative activity and the analysis of pedagogical speech, as well as the determination of ways of its continuous improvement. Key words: communicative competence, future primary school teachers, communicative competence of primary school teachers, communicative activity of primary school teachers.

Negative effects of mobbing among primary school teachers

The article is devoted to the problem of negative consequences of mobbing among primary school teachers. Based on the analysis of philosophical, psychological and pedagogical literature, the state of problems is revealed. The task of this article is to analyze the problem in domestic and foreign pedagogical science and practice, to reveal the peculiarities of mobbing, the specifics of its manifestation and consequences in general educational institutions among primary school teachers.
 The article analyzes mobbing as a social problem. A terminological study of various manifestations of behavior, related to putting pressure on the employee and humiliating his/her dignity, was carried out. The essence of mobbing, its structure is revealed. The forms of mobbing among primary school teachers are characterized. The consequences of mobbing for an individual, school team and society as a whole are systematized. Directions for further research on the problem of mobbing are outlined. The analysis of international and domestic experience shows that the problems of mobbing are extremely difficult to overcome. Mobbing in many countries is perceived as a serious problem that needs to be fought. Mobbing leads to serious psychological and psychosomatic diseases that make a person powerless and destroy his/her self-esteem. Mobbing has a negative impact not only on the victim, but also on his/her immediate environment - family, friends. Teacher mobbing also has a detrimental effect on students. In Ukraine, there is no specially created legal mechanism for combating bullying at the workplace of employees, but a draft law is being developed, which includes an explanation of the term and a list of the main fines for such actions.
 The practical significance of the article is that its materials can be used in the organization of the educational process of general education institutions and primary school teacher training

Professional training of future primary school teachers based on ethnopsychological features and ethnopedagogical traditions

The purpose of this research; The aim is to get the opinions of future primary school teachers about vocational education based on ethnopsychological characteristics and ethnopedagogical traditions. This research was designed and conducted in accordance with the qualitative research method. The study group of the research consists of 125 teacher candidates studying in primary school teaching departments at various universities in Kazakhstan in the 2021-2022 academic year. The research data were collected with a semi-structured interview form prepared by the researchers. As a result of the research; the vast majority of future primary school teachers; They stated that they strongly support vocational training based on ethnopsychological characteristics and ethnopedagogical traditions and they find the training provided for the provision of vocational qualifications sufficient. The vast majority of future primary school teachers; They stated that a more effective education should be provided by combining educational technologies and ethnopedagogy, textbooks and materials should be more original, lectures should be given by experts who support ethnopedagogy and course contents should be created that ensure the active participation of students related to ethnopedagogy. In addition, some of the teacher candidates; They emphasized that alternative elective courses related to the cultural histories of different countries should be opened, course hours should be increased, more importance should be given to gaining ethnopedagogical teacher qualifications, pre-service teachers should be provided with internships in the field of ethnopedagogy, and cultural trips should be added to the course curricula.
 Keywords: Ethnopsychology , ethnopedagogy, prospective teachers

Knowledge of Dyslexia among Teacher Trainees in Malaysia

Teacher trainees are a critical group of professionals responsible for identifying students with dyslexia in schools. This study aimed to examine the common understanding and misconceptions concerning dyslexia among Malaysian primary school teacher trainees. The study was conducted using a set of questionnaires known as the Knowledge and Belief about Developmental Dyslexia Scale (KBDDS) developed by Soriano et al. (2015) to investigate teachers' general knowledge, symptoms and diagnosis, and treatment of dyslexia. The questionnaire consists of 36 questions that require a true or false answer. Ninety-nine teacher trainees participated in the study. The results showed that there was a moderate proportion of teacher trainees who were not familiar with dyslexia in terms of general information (34%, n = 39), symptoms and diagnosis (23%, n = 23), and treatments (32%, n = 32). Based on the results, we can conclude that there were teacher trainees who were unfamiliar with dyslexia regarding the general information, symptoms and diagnosis, and treatments. Teacher trainees need to master every aspect of dyslexia because it will help them to enhance their skills in teaching students with dyslexia. This study's implication for improving pre-service teacher training programs for preparing teacher trainees to master the issues related to learning disabilities, special education, and especially dyslexia are discussed.

Formation of a teacher's digital culture by means of mass open online courses

Introduction. Education is a strategic resource for sustainable development, as it forms a new culture of society, sets new guidelines. The low qualification of teachers in the field of digital culture is a hindering process in the digital economy. It is the university that should comprehensively solve the problems of training a future teacher, taking into account the methodology and implementation of practical activities in the direction of the formation of the digital culture of the teacher. The purpose of our research is to generalize the use of the opportunities of mass open online courses in the continuous development of a teacher's digital culture, starting from the first year of study at a pedagogical university. To achieve this goal, we have chosen a methodology for calculating online course assessment indicators proposed by Kirkpatrick and Jack Phillips.Materials and Methods. The analysis of psychological and pedagogical literature on the problem of the formation of the digital culture of the future teacher made it possible to determine its relevance for the modern development of digital society. One of their tools for its formation, the authors propose the use of open online courses within the framework of the organization of mixed education at the university.Results. In the course of the study, we identified the initial level of digital culture of students of 3-4 courses of the faculties of mathematics, physics, computer science and primary school teacher training South Ural State Humanitarian Pedagogical University. The topics of mass open online courses were determined on the basis of the identified level of digital culture and personal needs of students in such courses, which made it possible to form the content of an individual educational trajectory. The survey of students who took part in our study revealed the willingness of students to use the opportunities of mass open online courses in their academic and further professional activities for the development of digital culture.Discussion and Conclusion. In the course of this study, indicators for evaluating online courses based on the Kirkpatrick and Philips methodology were identified, recommendations were given to eliminate emerging risks when taking mass open online courses. In conclusion, it is concluded that mass open online courses can be used as a means of developing a teacher's digital culture.

Theatrical Activity as a Way of Developing Musical-Choreographic Competence in Future Preschool and Primary School Teachers

The article highlights the possibilities of applying elements of theatre arts in the process of preschool and primary school teachers professional training. In particular, it reveals the issue of forming musical and choreographic competence in students by means of various forms, types and methods of drama. The main forms of musical and choreographic competence formation in preschool and primary school teachers are practical and laboratory classes (disciplines “Pedagogy”, “Fundamentals of pedagogical creativity”, “Fundamentals of stage and screen art with teaching methods”, “Organization of theater activity in preschool education institutions”, “Methods of music education”, “Musical art with methods of teaching”, etc.) and extracurricular forms of students’ theater activity (drama societies, drama studios, etc.).
 Important types of drama activities in the process of training future preschool and primary school teachers are staging and dramatization, within which it is advisable to use different methods of forming students’ musical and choreographic competence: music-motor and drama games, staging of fairytales and songs, improvisation on a given theme-image, sketches, etc. Their use contributes to the development of a holistic set of musical and choreographic abilities, formation of singing skills, stage and dance movements, upbringing of future teachers’ performance culture and so on.