The Ministry of Education and Science in Kazakhstan are in the process of reforming the teaching of English.  To position the British Council as a key partner in this national ELT reform in secondary education, the British Council utilised the expertise of an external ELT Consultant, Lena Lenskaya, who was previously Assistant Director British Council Moscow.  The key areas of interest were curriculum design, text-book writing, testing, teacher professional development and assessment of teachers and learners’ competence.

The consultancy programme included a prior desk-study of documentation submitted by key education stakeholders followed by individual meetings, round tables and a workshop during a three-day visit to Almaty and Astana, 18-20 October. As part of an ongoing Ministry British Council partnership the Ministry provided logistical support, premises and 50% of the total funding (£2,000) while the British Council organised the programme and co-funded the other 50%.

The workshop involved 30 representatives of key stakeholder organisations who discussed the current ELT situation in the country and perspectives for future ELT development within the framework of the State Programme for Education Development in Kazakhstan for 2011-2020.  Working in several groups related to ELT components, the round table participants developed recommendations for each ELT sector.  

Lena Lenskaya will provide a comprehensive report to the Ministry of Education and Science recommending a strategy for implementing the projects necessary in order to achieve the ambitions of the Ministry in the area of secondary ELT in an effective and coordinated way.