The rapid development of educational technologies requires a deeper understanding of pre-service teachers’ readiness for artificial Intelligence and the extent to which their professional self-efficacy beliefs influence this process. Although the integration of emerging technologies has gained increasing attention, the relationship between technological competence and professional confidence among pre-service teachers remains underexplored. This study aims to investigate the interplay between pre-service teachers’ readiness for artificial intelligence and their professional self-efficacy. An exploration sequential mixed method design was employed, beginning with a quantitative phase involving 293 pre-service teachers, followed by a qualitative phase to capture deeper insights. Findings revealed that pre-service teachers demonstrated an elevated level of readiness for artificial intelligence and positive self-efficacy beliefs, yet no meaningful relationship emerged between the two variables. The results suggest that professional self-efficacy and technological readiness are influenced by broader contextual and pedagogical factors rather than functioning in a straightforward manner. In the qualitative phase, participants highlighted both opportunities and challenges related to the use of artificial intelligence in primary education. While many emphasized its potential to support personalized learning, reduce workload, and enhance student adaptability, concerns were raised about ethical implications, risks to social-emotional development, cultural values, digital literacy gaps, and infrastructural limitations. The study underscores the necessity for teacher education programs to extend beyond technical training by incorporating pedagogical, ethical, and cultural dimensions to prepare pre-service teachers for meaningful integration of artificial intelligence into educational practice.

One of the key challenges in the education system is fostering students' personal development by cultivating critical thinking skills. Analyzing the research of both domestic and international scholars to establish the theoretical and methodological foundations of the study has shown that the term "critical thinking" used across various scientific disciplines, carries multiple interpretations. The purpose of the article is to consider visual methods as means of developing critical thinking in younger schoolchildren. Visual techniques allows to organize the material in advance and present ideas. The research results were analyzed using the methods of compilation, comparison, systematization. The research was conducted from September to December 2023. The study involved students of grades 4 "B" and 4 "G" of Z. Kosmodemyanskaya Lyceum School No. 23. The research was conducted in three stages. During the identification stage, students' critical thinking skills were initially assessed using the "Critical Thinking of Younger Schoolchildren" diagnostic method. In the formation stage, visual techniques were applied to develop these skills. Finally, in the control stage, the diagnostic method was re-administered to evaluate the effectiveness of the tasks, and a comparative analysis of the results was presented. The experiment findings demonstrated that the practical class activities were effectively structured and implemented.