ASTANA – Ybyrai mektebi, a rural school dedicated to seamless learning, opened in a pilot mode in the village of Kulynzhon in the East Kazakhstan Region, reported Forbes Kazakhstan on Sept. 20.
Ybyrai mektebi school. Photo credit: forbes.kz
The essence of seamless learning, also known as continuous learning, is to combine all in-class and out-of-class resources, as well as eliminate the stress of shifting from preschool to school. Initiated by Aidyn Rakhimbayev, the Kazakh philanthropist, a graduate of the school in Kulynzhon, the school consists of a kindergarten, primary, middle, and high school and a new community center for all residents.
“We consider grades zero through six an elementary school and offer a system without evaluation. An important skill that a child should acquire is the ability to learn. To do this, we focus on improving logic, rhetoric, grammar, and the theory of inventive problem-solving. After finishing high school, our children must clearly understand who they will become. Through the Gallup test, they receive a complete analysis of their abilities by the time they are in ninth or tenth grade,” said Ybyrai mektebi principal Aralbek Berikuly.
Pupils of the school. Photo credit: forbes.kz
The school also aims to involve parents in the teaching process.
“We also create comfortable conditions for the parents and all residents of the village to engage them in the learning process. We have a community center with a modern library, a cinema, a choreographic hall, classrooms for applied arts, music rooms, children’s and adult play areas, and a planetarium. If we cannot bring the village out into the world, then we can bring the world into the village,” Berikuly added.
