Scary Statistics: The State of Schools in Kyrgyzstan (original) (raw)

OECD Reviews of School Resources: Kazakhstan

2015

Executive Summary The primary and secondary education system in Kazakhstan has accomplished significant achievements. It has managed to reach almost universal access to primary and secondary education, and few differences are observed in enrolment by geographical location, socio-economic background and gender. Although the level of education attainment of the population is high, the performance of Kazakh 15 year-olds in PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) 2012 suggests that there is considerable room to improve the quality of student learning outcomes. In mathematics, Kazakh students are on average two years behind their peers in OECD countries and about 45% of them are low performers, a proportion significantly above the OECD average (23%). The language of instruction in schools, school location, and the socioeconomic background of students and schools make a difference in student performance. National and international assessments also suggest marked differences in educational outcomes between urban and rural areas. Kazakhstan has embarked on profound reforms to improve the quality of the education system and is increasingly looking to international standards and best practices. Reform initiatives include the expansion of the pre-primary education network, the development of new mechanisms of school financing (including a new per capita funding scheme), the creation of resource centres to support small-class schools, further investment in school infrastructure and a wider use of information technologies in schools. In this context of reforms, while there is an apparent desire to increase resources devoted to education and awareness that spending per student remains markedly lower than the OECD average and that of other neighbouring countries, there remains an official reluctance to expand public expenditure on education which is linked to concerns about both the sector’s efficiency and its absorptive capacity. This report analyses the effectiveness of the Kazakh school system and identifies policy areas with potential efficiency gains or requiring further public investment. The following policy priorities were identified to improve the effectiveness of resource use in the Kazakh school system. Kazakhstan underinvests in education in comparison with other countries with similar income. The lack of adequate resources is reflected at a range of levels such as low enrolment rates in pre-primary education; poorly remunerated teachers; overcrowded urban schools; and poorly equipped small-class schools. At the same time, there is considerable scope for a more efficient management of resources in areas such as the school network and the teaching workforce. A gradual increase in public spending is needed to meet the ambitions set out in the sector’s strategic documents. Additional resources should be prioritised where these can have the greatest impact: early educational years and support to low performing and disadvantaged schools. Achieving considerable efficiency gains and ensuring that additional resources are well-spent, however, would require changes in governance structures. There is a need to strengthen the capacity to effectively manage and monitor the use of resources across all levels. In particular, insufficient local and school autonomy hinders effectiveness of resource use. Schools and rayons have little flexibility to invest more in human resources (by increasing staffing levels or by raising teacher salaries) if these are more acutely needed, or alternatively to invest in physical resources (school buildings, school equipment such as smart boards), if the present ones are insufficient or outdated. In addition, local and regional governments have very little spending discretion as norms determine how resources should be allocated and intergovernmental transfers have a very limited equalisation effect. A gradual increase of autonomy coupled with accountability and capacity building mechanisms could enable a more effective use of resources at the local and school level. The distribution of resources to schools is currently decided on a discretionary and incremental basis by rayons in consideration of national norms but steps have been taken towards the development of a per-student school funding scheme. This is a positive move as a well-designed funding formula can, under certain conditions, be the most efficient, equitable, stable and transparent method of funding schools. Before national roll-out, the formula could be refined to take greater account of students' needs, capture better differences in class size across the country and increase its simplicity. A wide-ranging review of school network organisation could shed light on potential expansions or downsizings of school facilities in light of demographic trends. A vision for the provision of education in rural areas could be developed to improve the quality, equity and efficiency of the large number of small-class schools, which are a result of a policy to ensure universal access to compulsory schooling. Kazakhstan should sustain the efforts to remove three-shift schools and explore ways to minimise the impact of doubleshift schools on younger students. There is also a need to adjust the norms for instructional hours to be more in line with OECD averages for official instructional time, particularly for students in grades 1-4. Having a relatively short school day, in terms of hours of instruction, may place children, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds and those who may be struggling, at risk of failure. More and more, the focus needs to shift towards providing education that promotes equity by recognising and meeting different educational needs. There is no systematic policy to support students who are falling behind. There is little provision of early support to avoid that students fall behind, with personalised and intensive intervention. A greater focus on addressing underperformance is needed in Kazakhstan. Ensuring that schools provide their students with adequate and timely support is essential to enable struggling students not only to stay at school but to get the most of their schooling years. Schools should be encouraged to use early warning systems to identify students at risk and support them as early as possible. This is in contrast with the overemphasis placed on top performing students. Also, schools in Kazakhstan appear to be making slow progress in accommodating children with disabilities. There is scope to strengthen the quality of teachers and school leaders. Professional standards could be developed to clarify expectations of what systems of initial education and professional development should aim to achieve, serve as a framework for the selection of candidates in recruitment processes, offer the credible reference for making judgements about their competence, guide professional development, and provide the basis for career advancement. Initial teacher education and professional development opportunities could be reviewed to ensure that these provide a solid foundation for teachers and adequately respond to their needs. In the case of school leaders, improvements in their recruitment, professional development and appraisal are needed to tap on their potential role in leading school improvement. There is an imperative need to reconsider the number of staff and their remuneration. Current student-teacher ratios indicate that there might be some oversupply of teachers in the system. Increasing student-teacher ratios and class sizes could free up resources to further invest in teachers' professionalisation and remuneration. Also, the conception of teacher employment, whereby basic compensation is associated uniquely to the teacher’s teaching load (stavka system), is a source of concern as it does not appropriately recognise the many tasks a teacher accomplishes beyond teaching and reduces his or her engagement in school activities. As a result, teacher employment needs to be reconceptualised and the stavka system should be discontinued. The objective is to raise the professionalism of teachers, which can also be supported by better and more restricted selection into the profession and possibly fewer teachers with better salaries. Kazakhstan recognises the importance of teacher and school evaluation but there is scope to strike a better balance between the currently prevailing accountability function and the improvement one. Clearly, there needs to be a stronger emphasis on teacher and school evaluation for development purposes where evaluation results lead to genuine professional discussions about effective teaching and teachers and schools receive advice for the improvement of pedagogical practices. There is ample room to improve the external and independent monitoring systems of Kazakhstan’s education system. The current monitoring approach is compliance-driven and entails no analysis of educational performance. As such, it is limited in the way it evaluates efficiency, equity, and value for money. An external independent monitoring system for school resource use should be a priority. External and independent bodies would strengthen the analysis of the ample data generated by existing monitoring systems. Enhancing the transparency and reporting framework is also likely to help reduce the opportunities for misallocation of resources and corruption that exist throughout the system, although a complementary policy to reduce loopholes in the system of norms is also needed.

OECD Reviews of School Resources: Kazakhstan 2015

This work is published on the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The opinions expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views of OECD member countries or the World Bank, its Board of Executive Directors, or of the governments they represent. This document and any map included herein are without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or area.

Uzbekistan Education Sector Analysis - Final Report

Report No: AUS0000586, 2018

Education in Uzbekistan is understood to be a driver of transformation in the country’s society and economy, and the GoU is committed to improving its education system in the context of its wider reform program. Undoubtedly, education at all levels in Uzbekistan is in a state of flux. In essence, the education reforms aim to expand access to preschool education while also restructuring the offerings for general secondary and secondary specialized education. By 2021, the GoU aims to reach 100 percent enrollment in preschool education for students aged 5–6 (or 7 depending on the birth date). Along with this important initiative, the GoU is revamping general secondary education (GSE), wherein students will have 11 years of compulsory education and multiple pathways to enter the labor market or higher education. These reforms have significant implications for improving student learning outcomes, but also pose relevant challenges for implementation and resource allocation. This ESA Report describes the current state of education outcomes and system performance as well as the reform environment across the sector. The report assesses areas where the country has made progress as well as areas for further improvement. A key message of this report is that the reform agenda in Uzbekistan is ambitious. While this agenda represents a considerable effort on the part of the GoU to meet the needs of its citizens for education and skills development, it also comes with a series of implementation challenges that should not be underestimated. Key systems for monitoring, quality measurement, and quality assurance are essential to support the reform progress and ensure that reforms translate into tangible results.

Conceptualizing Paradoxes of Post-Socialist Education in Kyrgyzstan

Nationalities Papers, 2008

Since national independence, university enrollments in Kyrgyzstan have at least tripled, and the number of higher education institutions has increased from nine or ten to almost fifty. In industrializing nations, transitions from elite to mass higher education are usually attributed to demand for more sophisticated technological and professional skills. In Kyrgyzstan, however, growth in higher education has been in liberal studies fields, while enrollments in technical fields have withered. This paper reviews some competing notions of the purposes of higher education internationally and in Kyrgyzstan. It is particularly concerned in Kyrgyzstan with the seeming paradox of increasing university enrollments without economic demand for highly skilled workers. An exploratory study of how this paradox is experienced at the personal and family levels is then presented, the focus of which is how students and parents perceive the desirability or need for university education. The research is also interested in how students pay for their studies; how they make university and specializations choices; and how well prepared they feel they were for university academic life. Data for the research came from open-ended survey questionnaires administered to several student cohorts at one Bishkek public university in Spring, 2007.

Educational Values in Kyrgyzstan: Their Transformation and Challenges

2015

Kyrgyzstan has an interesting history in the frame of education. In the 1920's, education was the last thing people valued. But today, they are ready to give their savings to get a good education. That's why teachers and trainers are doing their best to learn effective ways of providing a good knowledge. Currently, teaching methodology is facing a crucial problem. Even though teachers are being taught different interactive and collaborating methods of teaching, most teachers do not show this in practice. The aim of most private schools is to prepare global citizens and this is a new and unique attitude in my country. I believe that our positive results from encouraging our students to take part in the learning process will promote interactive learning in other schools. My research illustrates these challenges as well as the changes of educational values.

Review of Finnish and Turkish Education Systems: PISA Sample

The Russian Academic Journal, 2015

COMMERCE 1. Giriş "If it is the next year you think, plant a seed. Plant a tree, if it is the next decade you design, However if you think about next century, then educate people... If you plant a seed once, you get a crop one time, If you plant a tree, you get a product ten times, This product becomes hundred if you educate people. If you give a man a fish, he will have a single meal; If you teach him how to fish, he will eat all his life..." Kuan Tzu For centuries education is one of the most important requirements of communities. In recent days countries determine their education systems according to various scientific or traditional methods or adapt any successful education systems that are implemented by other countries. There are examination in which questions are directed to various age groups, that are conducted on national and international levels in different fields in order to perceive if the education system successful or not. Countries act over their