Soft Skills as a Basis for the Development of Multipotential Abilities of Future Teachers

Identification of future teacher training opportunities in the context of their multipotential abilities development in the process of training at university can provide good support for fulfilling students’ full potential. The development of multipotential abilities of future teachers when studying at university is an understudied area of research. The present study has shown that multipotentials possess soft skills. Timely identification and development of additional skills beyond qualification requirements will allow the teacher training system to create a generation of creative teachers who are able to respond effectively to non-standard challenges that the education system face today. Tangible results in this area can be achieved by building a model for the development of multipotential abilities of future teachers, putting soft skills at the forefront. This paper presents the results of four surveys of 124 first-year master’s degree students majoring in teacher education. The study confirmed that the respondents who received a bachelor's degree in another specialty, which indicates a tendency towards multipotentiality, have predominantly developed communication, creativity, cooperation and critical thinking skills. The study revealed that multipotentials have a high level of both hard and soft skills, which helps them in their professional activities. Thus, multipotential teachers can be nurtured by developing soft skills.