Opportunity for a bright future – talented children from remote villages of Kazakhstan got the chance to learn from the best teachers of the country. The project “Birge oqý” became a bridge between children from rural areas, advanced international teaching methods, innovative technologies and Kazakh teachers. Now their meeting point is the World Wide Web. The virtual school of the Academy of Kazakhstan’s First President has been operating in the country since the beginning of the year.
All of the children are eager to learn and very determined, the organizers said. They were selected on the basis of the ‘Myn Bala’ national olympiad. All of them get the opportunity to study for free. More than 1,500 five and six graders from all over the country have already received such a chance.
“This way, our virtual school has succeeded in reducing inequality in access to good quality education. Thus, now it doesn’t matter where the student is located, whether he is in Kyzylorda region, in the Aral district, or in a very remote village, where WhatsApp doesn’t even work. We have a lot of such students, but the children are capable and very motivated,’ said Aizhan Arshabayeva, Coordinator at “Birge Oqý” Distance Learning School.
The education process is monitored by the Academy’s moderators. They provide technical support to ensure that the lessons run smoothly. However, for those students who couldn’t join the lesson on time, the classes are being recorded. For the time being, the children are taught only core academic subjects, including math, English, Russian and Kazakh.
“The school’s teachers explain the lessons very well. Learning at the “Birge oqý” school takes about an hour per day, for example from 11:15 to 12:15. I enjoy solving all sorts of math problems and formulas,” shared a student Dayana Skendirova.
In the future, the organizers of the project intend to expand the curriculum and attract more school students. The plans are to admit over 10,000 talented Kazakh children already next year.
Translation by Assem Zhanmukhanova
Editing by Galiya Khassenkhanova
