Project

Designing and implementing responsive interventions to sustain the career progression of current and future teachers of English language in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan: The case studies of PRESETT at L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University Kazakhstan, BAISHEV University Kazakhstan, and Urgench State University Uzbekistan.

Project Overview

The conceptualisation of the schedule of activities and outputs designed for this project is predicated on the need to reduce the challenges the Kazakhstani and Uzbekistani governments are facing while promoting English language teaching as both countries consider the English language to be one of the key drivers for enabling socio-economic development. Kuzembayeva et al. (2022) in their study argue that despite government efforts in Kazakhstan, for example, making policy to embed multilingualism into education; nevertheless, teachers of English language still face impediments such as lack of research mentorship and lack of support. To ensure the existence of sufficient teachers of English language in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, this project seeks to better understand the Pre-Service Teacher Training (PRESETT) systems in place within the three universities chosen for exploration in order to enable the development and implementation of responsive interventions that will sustain the career progression of both current and future teachers of English language as the capacity and capability of both stakeholders needs to be strengthened. 

Furthermore, the need to contribute to the attainment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs): 4 (Quality Education), 5 (Gender Equality), 10 (Reduced Inequalities) and 17 (Partnerships for the Goals) are additional forces driving the outputs linked to the project in order to enable positive socio-economic change in society.

To address the issues presented above linked to the teaching of English language in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, this project seeks to design appropriate interventions aimed at addressing the issues that have undermined the career progression of current and future teachers of English language. This project is therefore well-timed to implement responsive interventions.

Methodology

Using a case study methodology which will focus on three cases including L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University Kazakhstan, BAISHEV University Kazakhstan, and Urgench State University Uzbekistan, attempts would be made to explore each case to better understand the underlining factors hindering the advancement, sustainability, and career progression of stakeholders linked to PRESETT and Initial English Language Teacher Education (IELTE). The project team will explore the extent to which Continuous Professional Development (CPD) workshops can help address some of the problems hindering English language teaching. The key drivers that influence people in choosing a career in English language teaching will be explored to identify potential avenues for enabling behavioural change aligned towards English language teacher career pathways. The use of case study methodology in exploring the systems in place at the three PRESETT institutions will help identify and aid the designing of appropriate context specific interventions such as a revised curriculum that aligns with UK and international English language teaching best practices whilst establishing a Community of Practice (CoP) to help teachers access supports and relevant information.