In today's world, education is the cornerstone of economic development, and the success and future prospects of our nation largely depend on its quality. Therefore, every family with children must address the issue of obtaining a quality education. Parents wish to create a springboard for a successful future for their child. Today, many choose private schools and educational centers, where unlike state educational institutions, each child has the opportunity to study in more comfortable conditions, learn several foreign languages, and gain deeper subject knowledge.
Recently, thanks to funding from Nurbank, the National Lyceum "QAZBILIM" was opened in Aktau, with its educational advantages shared by Director Aitimbet Sapargaliuly Rakhmetullaev.
Aitimbet Sapargaliuly, could you please tell us about the National Lyceum "QAZBILIM"?
The Lyceum "QAZBILIM" started its work in 2022 in the city of Aktau. Our lyceum radically differs from state schools: firstly, children study in very comfortable conditions, without feeling fatigue, strain, or, in some cases, pressure from teachers, which is often complained about by students of state educational institutions. Secondly, we use a proprietary educational program and actively adopt advanced international teaching practices.
Thirdly, an individual approach to each student. Today, in state educational institutions, the average number of students per class exceeds 30, and teachers simply don't have the opportunity to work individually with each student. In the "QAZBILIM" Lyceum, no more than 18 students study per class. A teacher can devote enough attention to each of them. We provide each child the opportunity to learn the material at their own pace. I believe that teachers should primarily care about the interests of the child, not about the UNT scores. Today, unfortunately, UNT results have become the determining factor of a school's success, which I consider not quite correct. The goal of our lyceum is to create a learning creative environment ensuring continuous intellectual development of students and cultivating worthy citizens of our country.
Particular attention in our lyceum is given to the study of the Kazakh, Russian, and English languages. Thanks to our proprietary program, students master the educational material and necessary vocabulary faster. I am sure that learning foreign languages is a significant contribution to a child's future. Our school aims to ensure a certain level of foreign language proficiency, making it easier for the child to study in the future.
Another advantage is that the child is taught chess, toguz kumalak, and other logical games; table tennis classes are also held at school.
The senior school program includes preparation for the UNT, the international SAT exam, the IELTS language test, and admission to leading universities in the country, such as Nazarbayev University.
However, we understand that today studying in our lyceum is not entirely accessible to many, so an educational center operates within the school, where students from other schools can gain deeper subject knowledge, master material they misunderstood at school, and study foreign languages in courses.
Could you please tell us more about the center?
It should be noted that the "QAZBILIM" educational center network has been operating in the education market for over 9 years. A total of 14 centers operate in 10 cities of Kazakhstan. Our special pride is that more than 10,000 students studied at "QAZBILIM" centers last academic year, 97% of whom received educational grants allowing them to study in universities for free.
Therefore, it was quite natural to decide to open an educational center "QAZBILIM" within the lyceum in Aktau. Traditionally, the school program does not provide for deeper subject study and often doesn't give slightly lagging students the opportunity to master missed material. Within our educational center, professional teachers help solve these issues. We have developed our own program for preparing for admission to specialized city schools (NIS, "Bilim-Innovation"), passing the UNT. Center students also study foreign languages: English, Chinese. Preschoolers are taught reading, writing, math.
What are the main advantages of the "QAZBILIM" educational center?
The number of successfully passing the UNT last year speaks for itself and best evaluates our work. I can confidently say that such impressive results were achieved thanks to the daily work of our teachers. Highly qualified teachers with professional achievements work at the center (students are winners not only of national but also international olympiads), who have deep subject knowledge and know how to engage students in the learning process. Our teaching staff strives to provide students with the necessary amount of knowledge, after receiving which a child can successfully pass exams and enter any chosen university. Therefore, our main value is the team of teachers who really love what they do.
Are many children today interested in studying at the lyceum? How many students are enrolled in your lyceum?
Despite the fact that the national lyceum in Aktau only started its work in 2022, we do not have enough places for everyone willing. In total, we received about 600 applications for admission, but as a result of the selection exam, their number halved, and today the number of students in the lyceum is 257. Although the school has been operating for only a year, we have already made a loud statement about ourselves. Students of the national lyceum "QAZBILIM" actively participate and take prize places in city, regional, and national olympiads, successfully defend scientific projects, and win creative contests.
Aitimbet Sapargaliuly, why did you choose such a challenging path as education?
From school, my favorite subject was mathematics, which is rightly called the queen of sciences. Everything in it obeys immutable laws, but any problem can be solved in many different ways. That is why I decided to become a mathematics teacher. After I received higher education at the Eurasian University in Astana, I returned to my native village of Ketebai in the Turkestan region, where I worked successfully for three years. At one of the qualification enhancement seminars, I met the director of the republican center "QAZBILIM" and received an invitation to work in Astana. Since 2018, I have been a member of the "QAZBILIM" team, and I am very proud of it. We were engaged in preparing children for the UNT and saw that a significant number of students from the western regions of the country were training in the online format. It became evident that there was a great demand for educational services in Aktau. Therefore, a decision was made to open a school and center, raising the question of financing. The "QAZBILIM" management proposed that I lead the future school, and I started looking for a bank to apply for a loan. We understood that for project implementation, we needed a reliable partner. We chose Nurbank, which has been operating for over 30 years and has established itself on the financial services market as a reliable and stable bank.
Was it difficult to obtain a loan? Do you find the lending conditions attractive? Are you satisfied with the service?
We took out a loan to purchase a building for the school and educational center, the loan amount is 380 million tenge, the term is 5 years. The loan was issued under the SME support program through the Damu Fund, thanks to subsidization, the loan rate for us is 6% (APR from 6.2%). The bank provided us with a three-month credit holiday, which was very convenient.
I would like to note that Nurbank employees helped us create a competent business plan and provided comprehensive support at all stages of application. Personally, Nurbank demonstrated a new format of relationships with clients, based on an individual approach and maximally comfortable service conditions. Without exaggeration, I say, when I visit the Nurbank office in Aktau, I like everything - the warm welcome, the attentive attitude from the staff, and, of course, the services Nurbank provides us entrepreneurs.
I know from the director of the Nurbank branch in Aktau that lending to socially significant projects, including in the field of education, is a priority for the financial institution. Nurbank understands that access to quality education is extremely important for society and the country as a whole.
Were there any difficulties in opening the school and educational center?
The founder of the "QAZBILIM" project is the honored educator of the RK, Ayatzhan Akhmetzhanovich. He is a chemistry teacher, PhD, master teacher. According to Ayatzhan Akhmetzhanovich, there were no particular difficulties. Everything went smoothly. The implementation of the project would have been impossible without government programs aimed at supporting SMEs. I realized for myself that in life, as in mathematics, any task can be solved, the main thing is to make an effort.
Source: lada.kz
