Digital tools in regional studies: a practice-oriented program for teacher professional development

Th e article presents the results of a study on the readiness level of primary education teachers to use digital tools and services including end-to-end technologies in their professional activities. Based on the results of an experiment involving 102 primary school teachers in the Kursk region, a key contradiction was identifi ed: a high level of motivational and value-based readiness coexists with a low level of cognitive knowledge and practical skills. To overcome this imbalance, a professional development program titled «Modern Digital Tools for Studying the Native Region in Curricular and Extracurricular Activities» has been developed and presented. Th is program integrates regional studies content with the digital technologies mastering.