ENHANCING THE INTELLECTUAL COMPETENCE OF PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS THROUGH THE PEDAGOGICAL IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DESIGN THINKING APPROACH
In the context of modern educational reforms, developing the intellectual competence of future teachers is increasingly critical. Design thinking, an innovative pedagogical approach, has been shown to cultivate essential cognitive skills in learners. This article explores practical implementation of design thinking in teacher education and examines how these methods can enhance prospective teachers’ analytical, creative, and collaborative abilities. We situate our discussion in Uzbekistan’s educational context, where policy emphasizes modern teaching methods. Uzbekistan’s students scored significantly below the OECD average on PISA 2022 creative-thinking tests, highlighting a need for innovative pedagogy. Drawing on empirical studies, we find that integrating design-thinking activities (e.g. team-based projects, prototyping lessons) in teacher training yields improvements in critical thinking, empathy, and problem-solving among trainees. We conclude that adopting design thinking in teacher education can significantly boost intellectual competence among future teachers, aligning with national education goals in Uzbekistan.