Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools

The Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools are a network of schools for exceptional students of age 12 to 18 throughout Kazakhstan.[1] The schools are named for Nursultan Nazarbayev, president of Kazakhstan, who has promoted the idea as a means of developing Kazakhstan's economy.[2] Each school focuses primarily on a specific set of subjects: either physical sciences and mathematics or chemical and biological sciences, as well as foreign languages.[2] Instruction is trilingual, in Kazakh, Russian and English,[1] shifting to exclusively English by the senior year.[2]

The program was set up with the assistance of faculty members from the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education.[3]

Schools

The existing schools and their respective specialties are located in

Plans exist to eventually expand the program to 20 separate campuses throughout the country.[1]

Criticism

The Nazarbayev network has been criticized for its concentration on only the best and brightest at the expense of the bulk of the student population.[2] The program is under the direct control of the President's administration, rather than the Ministry of Education, with funding diverted from the Ministry of Education.[2]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools" (PDF). Randstad: Teach Anywhere. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Bartlett, Paul (22 February 2012). "Kazakhstan: Elite Schools May Limit Opportunities". EurasiaNet. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
  3. ↑ Weinberg, Rachel (10 February 2011). "GSE works to improve Kazakh schools". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Retrieved 3 July 2013.

[1]

  1. ↑ http://www.nis.edu.kz/
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