Winter School: implementation of the updated model of teacher education

In Abai KazNPU from January 8 to 19, 2024 a Winter School for the teaching staff of higher education institutions was held. Classes were devoted to the implementation of the updated model of teacher education, strengthening its content and scaling up 30 innovative educational programmes of teacher training developed under the project "Strengthening Pedagogical Capacity". Within the framework of the Winter School, 206 teachers from six universities in Almaty were trained offline and 39 teachers from I. Zhansugurov Zhetysu University were trained online. The Winter School was organised by the Department of Educational Programme Design of Abai KazNPU.

Traditionally, within the framework of winter schools of Abai KazNPU, familiarisation and training of teaching staff and heads of structural units on the implementation of educational programs of higher and postgraduate education, organisation of academic processes, research and education of students is carried out.

The work of the Winter School 2024 had the specific task of retraining university teachers to pilot and scale innovative educational programmes of teacher training for the region.

Offline training was conducted by the team, which included international experts from NAMK University of Finland: Irmeli Maunonen-Eskelinen, Marja Laurikainen, Mikael Viitasaari, Nazarbayev University: Gulnisa Zhunusova, Aizhan Musina, Asiya Karpisheva, national trainers from Abai KazNPU and KazNWTTU: Baidildina A.M., Abayeva G.A., Zhumankulova E.N., Kabysheva M.O., Karbayeva S.S., Nurman S.T., Orazaeva G.S., Oshanova N.T., Rabilova Z.J., Khamraev S.I.

The Winter School training program includes such issues as: core curriculum; syllabus template; constructive alignment and assessment; student-centred learning; active learning methods; IT-technologies; inclusion; science-oriented education; STEM, CLIL and sustainable development in the activity of a modern teacher.

As a result of the school work on new educational programmes, conceptual templates of discipline programs (syllabuses) of modern format were developed taking into account the above-mentioned topics.

In the current academic year Abai KazNPU is piloting 12 innovative educational programs for training new-format school teachers in geography, physics, mathematics, computer science, special pedagogy, art education, music education, physical education and history and social studies.

Innovative Master`s degree programs such as Digital Pedagogy and Special Pedagogy to Support Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders meet the challenges of recent years.

In the future, it is expected to implement all educational programs developed in this project, as Abai KazNPU has a license to provide teacher training in all areas. For example, in the upcoming 2024/2025 academic year, the university plans to enroll in the following 7 new educational programs, such as training of teachers of biology, chemistry, Kazakh, English and Russian languages, preschool teacher, as well as the Master`s programme "Management and Leadership in Education".