Tatiana V. Volkodav

The relevance of the researched problem lies in the constant search for innovative technologies, approaches, and methods of teaching foreign languages in higher education institutions. This is crucial for creating a dynamic, resourceful, and effective educational process. Through their joint participation in project-based research activities, both students and teachers can learn to anticipate new challenges, trends, and societal demands in a rapidly changing world. The objective of this article is to present the experience of expanding the methodological opportunities of teaching the discipline "Foreign Language" and introduce a qualitative research method called Online Photovoice (OPV) into the Russian scientific and educational space. It also aims to describe the algorithm of using OPV in project-based research activities. While Online Photovoice is an effective approach to social problem research, it can also be used to study various acute and emotionally charged topics in fields such as education, healthcare, culture, and sports. Using this method allows research participants to go beyond traditional communication methods and interview techniques. The language of photography, being more accessible and expressive, enables individuals to express emotions, moods, and feelings that are difficult to articulate in words. The theoretical significance of this article lies in the detailed description, for the first time in the Russian language, of the methodological aspects of Online Photovoice in the context of cross-cultural study. The practical significance of the presented experience in implementing a cross-cultural project is characterized by its contribution to improving the psychological climate in classes and creating an interactive and engaging environment for students. This approach can be applied not only in foreign language laboratory classes but also in disciplines such as Pedagogy, Methodology, and Methods in Psychological and Pedagogical Research, Fundamentals of Project Activities, Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Psychological and Pedagogical Research, and others. The concept of this method allows students to express their thoughts and emotions, providing opportunities for deeper emotional and intellectual engagement in the learning process. Through project activities using the Online Photovoice method, students were able to create a new stimulating environment in just five practical sessions and ten hours of independent work. This environment integrated their personal and professional competences into a qualitatively new vector of their development.

The number of foreign students enrolled in the Psychological and Pedagogical Education program at Kuban State University is increasing annually, prompting the educators of the "Foreign Language in Professional Activities" course to constantly improve their teaching methods. This article presents an innovative method based on design thinking, to support graduate students of the Psychological Counseling in Education master's program to create psychological board games thereby improving their language skills and professional competences through the "Foreign Language in Professional Activities" course. Design thinking case studies have proven effective as they help students to analyze the psychological characteristics of adolescents and choose the most appropriate and efficient psychological methods and counseling techniques in both their native and foreign languages, by using a creative and unique approach that accounts for the audience’s needs. This work proposes a novel algorithm for designing psychological board games for bilingual adolescents to be used in counseling sessions, which adds to the scientific and methodological value of this research. The practical significance of creating such games is that graduate school students gain practical skills that may be useful for participation in the "Startup as a Diploma" program. Furthermore, these findings may be utilized when compiling curricula, educational and methodological recommendations for mastering a foreign language for special purposes and related disciplines of master's programs for future educational psychologists.