From August 15 to 16, 2019, the Republican Forum of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan “Global Values and Quality of Kazakhstan’s Education and Science” was held in Nur-Sultan.

On the first day of the forum, prominent scientists of the Republic of Kazakhstan participated in the meeting, and Fatima Nadyrovna Zhakypova, Vice Minister of Education and Science, also participated.

The Vice Minister’s report noted that in 2019, at the meetings of the High Scientific and Technical Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan, questions regarding the priority areas for the development of science at the current stage, as well as further financing of science and the draft scientific and technical program of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2020-2022 were discussed. According to the decisions of HSTC, the volume of financing of grant projects and programs for 2020-2022 will increase far-forth.

Kassym-Zhomart Tokayev instructed the government to take urgent measures to address problems in the education system. The head of state instructed the Ministry of Education and Science to review the cost of educational grants and the standards for universities.

Kassym-Zhomart Tokaev raised the problem of the workload of teachers. He applied to the authorities and demanded not to burden teachers with extra work.

Children in Kazakhstan need to instill an “environmentally friendly” consciousness, cultivate a culture of household cleanliness and hygiene in every possible way, and teach them to understand the crucial importance of protecting nature, Tokayev said.

Kasym-Zhomart Tokaev noted that “Suicides in children and adolescents are a tragedy for all of us. We all need to seriously think about why children take such a step. The formation of solid attitudes is, in fact, a basic criterion for the quality of the educational process”.

The President instructed to ensure a thoughtful transition to a 12-year model as part of the implementation of the new State program for the development of education and science until 2025.

The President noted that “Teachers’ salaries remain one of the lowest, accounting for 65% of the average salary in the economy.” He instructed the government to double teachers’ salaries over four years, and also consider increasing the period of leave for all teachers to 56 days, a supplement for a master’s degree, and so on.

The President instructed the Ministry of Education and Science to develop and launch special programs to overcome the academic gap of children from low-income families or from schools working in difficult social conditions and showing poor results.

At the end of his report, the President presented state awards to teachers: the Order “Qurmet” and the medals “Eren enbegi ushin”, “Shapagat”, as well as letters of thanks from the President of Kazakhstan and the lapel badges “Ybyray Altynsarin” and “Honorary Worker of Education”.

Then, the Minister of Education and Science of Kazakhstan, Askhat Aymagambetov, made a report.

Askhat Aymagambetov announced the return of the primer book to the schools of the republic until 2021. A primer, written and published by Akhmet Baitursynov in 1912 in Orenburg, will return to schools. Also, the head of the ministry instructed to reduce the number of paid contests. According to the minister, the transition to the Latin alphabet will be carried out gradually in accordance with the schedule.

In 2019, the Ministry will implement the “Easy Portfolio” project. Parents have been given a choice: pupils can leave paper textbooks at school, and use electronic books at home.

The Minister of Education and Science in his report drew the attention of the participants of the August conference to the fact that the current rules for organizing school meals have corruption risks, so they will be changed.

To protect the rights of children, the ministry plans to create non-state adoption agencies, whose functions will include training of potential adoptive parents.

In Kazakhstan, the system of certification of teachers will be changed. According to the head of the ministry, more than 120 thousand teachers have managed to achieve higher wages through certification.

The professional growth of teachers and the management staff of pre-school and secondary education organizations will be determined through certification through passing the national qualification test. It will be fully automated.

The Minister of Education and Science announced the introduction of a five-day work week for school teachers.

The head of the ministry stated the need to improve the status of college teachers. A new certification system for college teachers will be introduced with an additional charge for the qualification category through the testing system.

According to the minister’s reports, a unified national testing in the future will be available in electronic format.

In addition, the minister said that the grants will go with the student on the basis of a voucher. With this voucher, he will be able to pay exclusively for his studies at the university. In addition, the student will be given the right to transfer to another university with his grant on a co-payment basis. Also, universities are given the right to choose students.

The size of the state educational grant has not increased since 2012. Therefore, a phased increase in the size of the state grant is necessary. This will allow universities to significantly increase the salaries of teachers, workers and improve infrastructure.

In order to improve the quality of teacher education, the ministry will pilotly introduce a national qualified test by graduates of pedagogical specialties on a voluntary basis. From 2021, this procedure will become mandatory.

The Minister of Education and Science of Kazakhstan congratulated teachers on the upcoming new school year.

Translated from Russian

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