WAYS TO FORM CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS OF PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENTS ON THE BASIS OF NANO-LEARNING

Abstract

In the modern educational space, the introduction of innovative teaching methods plays an important role in developing a competitive personality. One of the most important and deeply researched areas is the development of critical thinking skills of primary school students through nano-learning. This article examines ways to develop the critical thinking skills of primary school students based on nano-learning. To determine the relevance of the study, an analysis was conducted of the State Educational Standard of Primary Education, the Address of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to the people of Kazakhstan, and the scientific works of domestic and foreign scholars who have studied the concepts of “critical thinking” and “nano-learning.” An author’s definition of critical thinking was given, its main components were identified, and the similarities and differences between nano-learning and digital learning were clarified.

A total of 146 students from general education schools in Shymkent took part in the study. The experimental group included 72 students, and the control group included 74 students. The experimental research was carried out in the first and second terms of the 2025–2026 academic year. At the diagnostic stage, a questionnaire was used to identify students’ interest and motivation in nano-learning, and a special author’s task was used to determine the initial level of critical thinking of primary school students. The results of this stage showed the need to develop students’ critical thinking skills. At the formative stage, two nano-learning methods were used. The first method was nano-questioning, which included four types of questions: fact-finding questions, information-gathering questions, problem-solving questions aimed at making choices, and judgment-forming questions. The second method was nano-gamification, which was organized as a game on interactive platforms such as Kahoot, Padlet, and Miro. The “Insert” method, the “Find the False Information” method, and Bloom’s Taxonomy were used. As a result, nano-learning methods proved effective in developing the critical thinking skills of primary school students.