Ethnic aspects in educational design: Integrating the arts into the preparation of future teachers to promote the development of ethnocultural harmony in education

Relevance. The relevance of the problem under study is conditioned by the growing ethnocultural diversity of modern societies and the need to form harmonious interethnic relations. Purpose. The work aims to develop and test pedagogical design on the use of art opportunities in training future teachers for the development of their ethnocultural competence. Methodology. The study employed theoretical methods (structural-functional analysis, induction), empirical methods (pedagogical experiment, questionnaire, mathematical statistics), and methodological approaches (systemic, reductionist). Results. The research determined principles for selecting the content of art and aesthetic disciplines: multiculturalism, interdisciplinary and dialogicality. The effectiveness of the methodology was confirmed during a formative pedagogical experiment, showing a significant increase in the ethnocultural competence of students in the experimental group compared to the control group. Conclusions. Key pedagogical conditions for successfully implementing the developed methodology include close interdisciplinary integration of art history courses and the inclusion of ethnocultural content in art disciplines. This integration helps form systemic ideas about the artistic diversity of Kazakhstan's people and fosters a valuable attitude towards the cultural heritage of all ethnic groups. The practical significance lies in using the developed pedagogical design to prepare teachers for working in a multicultural environment. Keywords: interethnic tolerance; author�s elective course; multicultural education; multicultural educational environment