8:30-11:00 A.M.--We are first visiting Capital City School (School # 159) Kazakh School
Agenda-School Tour, classroom observations in a variety of disciplines, meeting with administrators, teachers, and students.
This school was very much like TCMS: 1,200 students (all grades though), 109 teachers, talented students and teachers, high test scores. We started our visit walking the red carpets, literally. I felt very welcomed and honored to be there from the first minute. We first met in the principal's office and learned a little bit about her accomplishments. Then, we started to walk around the school. You could tell that they have great pride in their school and their students. Images of nature were everywhere. Also, there were TONS of plants everywhere as well. Our first stop was the library. There were very proud of the amount of books and the variety that they had to offer the students. They also pointed out how new everything looked. They said they the students and teachers have such pride in their school, you would never see any marks of the walls or the desks. All around the halls, there are images of the country and you can feel the pride they have for their culture and history. We watched a PowerPoint of all the many accomplishments of the school and their students. It was impressive. We then met some of the most talented students in the school: singers, dancers, and musicians. I have a few videos I will post later. We were introduced to their best teachers in all subjects. These students and teachers were know for their international accomplishments. Many students travel abroad and study for semesters in other countries. If a student was talented in the arts, they had also preformed internationally as well.
I was taken to a 7th grade English classroom where a 45 minute lessons was about to get started. Notice the uniforms on the students, Promethean board, and the computers on the desks. The lesson of the day was about books: fiction, nonfiction, fantasy, romance, drama, poetry. They had a workbook they were working from as a class and with a partner. I was impressed that they read classics in many different languages. Some of their favorite classic authors that we would recognize were books from Shakespeare, Jack London, Mark Twain, James Joyce etc. They were very well behaved and excited about the lesson. When they speak, they stand up by their desk. The lesson consisted of many opportunities to use their language skills. For example, the teacher might ask a question, and the student would answer in English. Then she would say, "How do you say that in Russian or Kazakh?" So, the students were always practicing language skills: speaking, writing, listening, and reading. Also, look at the way they raise their hands. Their hands are held in a different position. We were told that it is from the Russian era, but they continue to to it. We also had a question/answer session with them, and they had read most of the popular books my students have read: Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Twilight, Eragon,etc. One part of the lesson, she handed out mini posters of authors from countries. They had about four minutes to read it and prepare an oral presentation about the author. At the end of the lesson, she would "score" each students' English speaking skills outloud with a number 1-5. Honestly, she took off points many times or she apologized to us for their mistakes, and I didn't even notice any mistakes. After the lesson, we had a question answer session with the students. They wanted to know mostly where we were from and if students in the US had to wear uniforms.
We then had a FEAST! They were so happy to have us and to provide lunch for us. It was extremely humbling to see how much preparation had gone into our visit. All the food was handmade. It was honestly an honor for them to provide this for us. Kazakh people are very giving. I tried fermented mare's milk and camel milk. There is a first and a last time for everything! Both milks had a very different and strong taste!
After lunch, we went to the canteen (lunchroom). Everything seems homemade and great care has been made to make the meal nutritious. They didn't have lockers, but they had coat corners where students could NEATLY leave their stuff. It was monitored by adults.
Then, we went to the swimming pool! Yes, the pool! They swim every day. My favorite thing was that they had hairdryers set up for the students, so that they could dry their hair before they went back to class. On our way out, we randomly stopped at different classrooms. One of the classrooms we visited was a first grade classroom. The principal was very proud of what they could do--recite lessons, and singing. They were asked to recite random items--songs and chants- and they did them on the spot. As we were leaving, we were given huge bouquets of flowers.
Agenda-School Tour, classroom observations in a variety of disciplines, meeting with administrators, teachers, and students.
I could tell that the first school had a very prepared program for us. This school had prepared for our visit, but wanted us to see a normal day at their school. So in generally, nothing was staged just for our visit.
As we walked into the building, there were students and staff lining the walkway clapping as we entered the building. We walked into the auditorium, for a presentation. Students danced and sang. One song they preformed for us was the "Chattanooga Choo Choo." We walked in and out of different classrooms. Notice the Smart boards, computers, uniforms, etc. I spotted a Harry Potter book on one of the student's desks. The library was not only a place to check out books, but to study for up and coming tests. Then, we moved to the canteen (lunchroom). Food was served on the tables, before the students came in. The meals were nutrition and homemade. Today's lunch was meat and potatoes, soup, fruit, and bread.
I found a Chemistry class to be very interesting. The teacher was telling us how important science is in their country. The teacher works with the government to work on real world problems and projects. She was showing us a poster which was the end result of one of the projects done with the government which was recognized internationally. They were very proud of all the resources that they had for the students in science, especially chemicals. She commented, "How can you do Chemistry without all the necessary chemicals?"
We continued walking through the building. A computer drawing class was working on a project designing a city for the future. An English class was working on grammar. Notice the notebooks in the back cabinet, all English grammar. One teacher asked me, how many hours a day do I spend on English grammar? Hours a day on grammar---oh my! They also had a museum in their school about their history and culture. We also met with some high school students in a question/answer session. Mostly students wanted to know helpful hints about how to get into American universities! At the end of the day, we were treated to more food and given a present--a ceramic apple. Kazakhstan is know for their apples!