Astana removes three-shift learning, says President
Speaking at a meeting on the development of Astana on Wednesday, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stated the rate of school construction lags behind growth in the child population, Qazinform News Agency reports via Akorda.
Highlighting that a shortage of schools is among pressing challenges facing the nation, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev pointed out that the rate of school construction lags behind growth in the child population. The President projected the country could lack 400,000 school places within the next three years, including 28,000 in the capital.
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said around a thousand schools for over one million pupils have been put into operation in the past five years. Of these, 75 were built in Astana, helping the city remove three-shift learning.
Speaking about the Keleshek mektepteri (Future Schools) project, the Kazakh President said that these schools are modern and well-equipped. Tokayev said, based on experience, it is reasonable to transition from this major project to construction of quality, safe, and budget-friendly schools. “This should become standard practice in modernization of educational infrastructure across the country,” he said.
The Head of State also urged to improve public-private partnership tools in school construction.
It is important to focus on developing private school education. In order to draw investment, it is necessary to take systemic measures, including improvement of public-private partnership tools. At this stage, given the real demand in development of private schools, misuse and fraudulent activities emerge, indicating weak licensing, financing, quality control mechanisms. Moreover, some local authorities let serious planning fallacies happen. As a result, neighborhoods with real shortages of school places continued to remain without necessary infrastructure. All this indicates weak interdepartmental coordination and impersonal approach to work… Secondary education development should be comprehensive, based on precise demographic calculations and measurable results. The existing model needs a sweeping revision, said Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
Earlier, Head of State Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said social facilities must be accessible to population.
