The language level of English language teachers in many parts of Kazakhstan is below the B1 Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).  This means that teachers are only able to convey restricted language knowledge to their students.

Teachers who have been trained at pre-service institutions, which still use courses  based on traditional methodology such as the grammar-translation method, often  have low levels of English and face difficulties in teaching English at schools.  The in-service training courses they are obliged to take once in five years are based on the same traditional methodology and so they are not able to improve their linguistic competency.

Teachers therefore need a General English course to improve their level of English.  However, this is difficult for many reasons such as lack of time, high costs, non-availability of courses in rural areas etc. The main reason however is loss of face because English teachers are expected to be the experts, which make it impossible for them to attend a General English course with language learners.  Moreover, a General English course does not help teachers to apply and practise the language they are learning in teaching-related contexts.

English for Teaching (EfT) has been produced to develop both linguistic competence and English language teaching skills and knowledge. It is an in-service course for L2 teachers whose English language competency is A2, and it is aimed at improving the quality of English language learning and teaching.

The EfT pilot of modules 8-18 in Kazakhstan involved 175 English teachers in Astana, Aktobe, Almaty, Karaganda, Kyzylorda, Pavlodar, Shymkent, Taldykorgan, and Uralsk between February and March 2011. In-service Teacher Training Institutes (InSETTIs) contributed by funding the pilot through covering the trainers’ fee and direct costs such as provision of the venue and the facilities for the workshops.

Trainers trained by the British Council experts within the ETTE (English for Teaching: Teaching for English) project wrote a final pilot project evaluation report and BC ELT staff conducted monitoring and held focus group discussions with the participants. They noted the high motivation and enthusiasm amongst the participants who gave very positive feedback about the course and trainers.  However the most positive thing was to see that teachers started using ideas learnt from the training in practice. One of the trainers Kalamkas Bitaeva wrote:” Teachers started speaking English and sharing ideas about teaching from the very beginning.  They were able to develop their language competency in parallel with teaching skills and apply the received knowledge in their teaching contexts.”