Digital Technologies as a Means of Developing the Readiness of Future Pedagogue-Psychologists to Work in Inclusive Education

Abstract

Kazakhstan’s transition to inclusive education requires pedagogue-psychologists prepared to support learners with special educational needs, yet professional preparation remains insufficient in developing this readiness, particularly through digital technologies. The study develops and pilots a model in which digital technologies serve as a means of developing such readiness, aligning preparation with the labour functions of the professional standard. A quasi-experimental sequential cohort design was applied at Karaganda National Research University named after Academician E.A. Buketov over two academic years (2023–2025). Both cohorts comprised twenty fourth-year students of educational programme 6B01101 “Pedagogy and Psychology” who took the same course (5 credits, 150 academic hours) with the same instructor; the control cohort (2023– 2024) was taught in the traditional lecture-and-seminar format and the experimental cohort (2024–2025) within a digital educational environment integrating Microsoft Teams, Moodle, and Zoom. Readiness was assessed before and after using a 24-item self-report instrument. In the experimental cohort all four components improved (motivational-value 85–90 %; cognitive 85–92 %; operational-activity 88–93 %; reflective 85– 88 %), and the share of students at the sufficient level rose from 50 % to 75