Teacher Training in Kyrgyzstan

1

Teacher Training in Kyrgyzstan

Duishon Shamatov and Rahat Joldoshalieva

Introduction

Teacher training was an important aspect of Soviet education. However, the break-up

of the USSR has negatively affected the quality of teacher training courses as it has

become increasingly difficult to offer quality training for pre-service and in-service

teachers. This paper is based on our continuous involvement in, and reflections on, the

educational transformations in Kyrgyzstan as well as by our review of other studies on

teacher training and education in general done by international agencies and individual

scholars. We also use the data from the study conducted by one of the authors

(Joldoshalieva, 2007) on in-service teacher training.1 Thus, the paper presents a

complex picture of teacher training, issues related to it, and offers recommendations for

their improvement.

Education during the USSR

Kyrgyzstan achieved a lot of progress in education during the USSR period. The

Soviets realised that the tempo of societal progress depended on the development of

science and education, and in 1919 Lenin issued a decree on mass education and the

eradication of illiteracy (Holmes, Read & Voskresenskaya, 1995). With massive

campaigns, the literacy rate jumped from 16.5 percent in 1926 to 99.8 percent in 1979

(Ibraimov, 2001). Schools were built in the most remote mountainous areas of

Kyrgyzstan; by 1978, there were 1,757 schools with 854,000 students and around

50,000 teachers (Tabyshaliev, 1979)2. From its outset, education in the USSR was free

and unified. All students were exposed to the same centrally designed curriculum, with

minor local adaptations in each republic of the USSR (De Young, 2001; Heyneman,

2000). The state controlled all educational institutions, teaching appointments, syllabi

and textbooks to ensure that all learners were exposed to the same outlook and would

have exposure only to “official” knowledge and attitudes (Apple, 1993; Heyneman,

2000).

1 This small-scale exploratory study was conducted to investiage the existing realities of in-service teacher education in Kyrgyzstan by capturing the voices of different people involved in teacher training. Overall, 27 teachers, school administrators and teacher educators were interviewed. 2 According to EFA report from 2000, there were 1259 schools taught in a Kyrgyz-medium, 133 taught in a Russian-medium, 138 taught in a Uzbek-medium and two schools taught in a Tajik medium as well as 385 schools that had two or more languages of instruction in Kyrgyzstan (EFA report, 2000).

2

After the break-up of the USSR, Kyrgyzstan started experiencing serious problems in all

public spheres, including education. DeYoung (2004) estimates that investment in

education declined from 8.2 percent of GDP in 1990 to 3.5 percent in 1995. Pre-school

enrolment in Kyrgyzstan declined catastrophically during the 1990s; of 1, 604 in 1991,

only 416 pre-school institutions remained by 2000 (DeYoung, 2004).3 Secondary

education suffered too. About 83.6 percent of the population of Kyrgyzstan had

complete secondary education in 1993, which decreased to 76.4 percent in 1996, and

to 69 percent in 1999 (DeYoung, 2002).

Almost 70 percent of Kyrgyzstan’s population live in rural areas and 83 percent of

schools are in rural settings (UNDP report, 2003). Students from rural areas have less

access to in-depth schooling; frequently they are distracted by helping with agricultural

work. Moreover, a large number of students from rural areas cannot attend school for

family reasons (Open Society Institute, 2002). According to official sources, more than

2,500 school-age children dropped out of school in 2001; however, unofficial reports

suggest that the actual number far exceeds this figure and comprises about 5,000

children (DeYoung & Santos, 2004). Students’ dropout is a by-product of economic

collapse and declining support for the social sector. The main reasons for children’s

dropout are poverty, insufficient food, lack of adequate clothing, inability to afford

learning materials, increasing cost of education, the decline of prestige and value of

education among community members, and negative attitudes towards education

(Open Society Institute, 2002).

While majority of population are struggling with everyday constraints, a small number of

parents can now afford quality education for their children (EFA, 2000). Many private

schools started functioning in the country. In addition, due to newly endorsed reforms of

“diversification”,4 new (innovative) types of schools such as lyceums, gymnasiums,

3 Overall pre-school enrolment in Central Asia was only 14 percent in 1999 (Open Society Institute, 2002). Significant declines in enrolment in pre-school institutions across Central Asia are related to the increased costs of education, reduced state subsidies for transport and food, and lower family incomes. 4 Though Soviet education espoused equality and uniformity, many scholars argue that Soviet schooling was never really monolithic or egalitarian, contrary to official doctrine. Besides clear disparities between Russian- and non-Russian-medium schools, obvious status differences existed between urban and rural schools as well as between schools with an emphasis on English or Mathematics (Niyozov, 2001; also see Sutherland, 1999). Korth and Schulter (2003) observe that the Russian-medium schools continue

3

author schools, and schools for gifted children have emerged (Holmes, Read &

Voskresenskaya, 1995; Open Society Institute, 2002). Many urban schools have turned

themselves into gymnasia or other schools of the “new type” in order to generate extra

income5. “New type” schools offer more advanced coursework in addition to the

national curriculum and extra academic services to students. They generally provide a

better and more comprehensive education than “ordinary” state-funded schools. Upon

graduation, they have a better chance to enter prestigious higher education institutions

upon completing school. Overall, there are 31 private and semi-private schools in

Kyrgyzstan (UNDP report, 2003). As a rule, private and “new-type” schools are located

in urban areas, where wealthier families who can afford to pay for their children’s

schooling (Open Society Institute, 2002). Thus, due to the officially endorsed

diversification of schools, the problem of stratification of the Kyrgyz society had re-

emerged.

Higher Education

As previously mentioned, higher education during the former USSR was free.

Moreover, majority of students were eligible for state stipends. During the USSR, there

were a small number of higher education institutions in Kyrgyzstan. Understandably,

small fraction of secondary school graduates of around 15% only was able to continue

their education at higher education institutions.

After the break-up of the USSR, the number of higher education institutions increased

(several private and semi-private “intergovernmental” universities were established)

from ten at the end of the Soviet period to 50 institutions and there are over 231,000

students are enrolled in higher education institutions, from which 213,500 students in

public universities and around 17,500 students at private universities (Brunner & Tillet,

2007).6 This is despite the fact that great majority of students pay fees nowadays.

Thus, the number of students in higher education institutions of Kyrgyzstan has

offering better education than schools in Kyrgyz and other local languages. The Russian schools continue to enjoy high prestige and are attended by children of different linguistic backgrounds, while the Kyrgyz schools are attended exclusively by Kyrgyz children (Korth & Schulter, 2003). 5 To become a “new type” school, a school has to have highly qualified, innovative teachers, sufficient facilities and resources, including textbooks and library. DeYoung et al (2006) observe that these schools got even better by untangling the mandated requirements of the government regulations of compulsory curriculum and schooling policies. They were successful in attracting money of the international development agencies. 6 The percentage of secondary school graduates who get admission in higher education institutions is very high. In 2000-2002, approximately 70% of school graduates were enrolled in higher education institutions.

4

increased from 141 students per 10 000 of the population in 1995 to 426 students per

10 000 in the 2004-2005 academic year (Brunner & Tillet, 2007).

There is an issue with large number of students graduating every year from higher

education institutions. According to different official and unofficial sources, anywhere

between 50% and 80% of university graduates join the long list of unemployed youth in

the country.7 Increasingly, a large number of graduates, especially with humanities

degrees (upto 70%) are becoming more interested in finding a well-paid jobs rather than

being employed according to their specialties.

Pre-service Teacher Education

Kyrgyzstan inherited its teacher education system from the USSR. Pre-service teacher

education is normally four to five years. During these years, the student teachers obtain

general knowledge, content-specific knowledge and moral and values education.

Teachers are prepared in colleges, institutes and universities. Kindergarten and

primary school teachers get education in pedagogic colleges, while secondary teachers

are prepared in pedagogic institutes or universities. Future teachers are admitted to the

pedagogical colleges or institutions after completing a so-called "incomplete secondary

education" (Class 9), or after completing their secondary education (Class 11).

Since independence, Kyrgyzstan adopted new educational policies and one of these

policies, the Law “On Education” from 1992 allowed for paid educational services

(Brunner & Tillet, 2007). Public higher institutions were now allowed to charge tuition

fees and they re-organized themselves into “budget” (no-fee) and “contract” (fee-

paying)8 contingent of students, with the latter paying for their studies. Osorov (2002)

observes that student fees now constitute a significantly higher proportion of higher

education institution budgets and that even nominally “state” universities today meet

only 10-15% of their budget requirements from state transfers (Osorov, 2002).

Moreover, higher education institutions now compete with each other for students and

are constantly trying to expand their enrolments (Reeves, 2003).9

7 Unfortunately, higher education institutions do not collect systematic data on the employment of their graduates (Brunner & Tillet, 2007). They simply do not pay attention to employment issues as their graduates. 8 The government determines the number of state-budget funded students, while higher education institutions themselves can determine the number of paying (contract) students but it has to be approved by the Ministry of Education. 9 There has been rapid shift towards elevating status of institutes, colleges and technical schools into universities so that they could open new specialities which were popular among the people and which

5

In 1993-1994 academic year 7.6 percent of students paid for their education, while in

2005, 76 percent of revenues were received from paid educational services and 24

percent from the state budget. In 2006, only 12 percent of students were budget

students.10 These students are fully paid by the government grants and after graduation

they have to teach for two years in a school they are placed. After they complete their

term of service they will receive their diplomas. Nevertheless, there is no systematic

monitoring of budget student graduates and at most pedagogical institutions follow up

only by asking a written letter from school director, which can be done as a formality.

Contract students pay tuition fee for their education11, and are not required to work to

receive their diplomas. Rather, they receive their diploma after successful completion of

teacher training institution.

Pre-service teacher education institutions generally enrol students via entrance

examinations. These examinations have been surrounded by controversies related to

the objectivity of examination questions and tests, nepotism, favouritism and corruption.

Those who had connections or could offer bribes were in better positions to get

enrolment in higher education institutions. Children from rural areas and from poorer

backgrounds find it difficult to enter higher education institutions (Romanchuk, 2002).

On June 30, 2002 the Ministry of Education introduced a nation-wide objective

assessment (testing) of the knowledge and skills of high school graduates applying for

government scholarships to Kyrgyzstan higher educational institutions (Drummond &

DeYoung, 2004). This examination replaced the previous system of examinations

administered by higher education institutions themselves for applicants seeking

government scholarships.12 The testing enables the deserving applicants to win

government scholarships and thus get enrolled in higher education institutions. The

new national testing intended to achieve objective, merit-based selection and to combat

corruption, nepotism and favouritism.

could bring profits to the universities. These institutions opened market-oriented, fee-paying course specialties in haste without sufficient resources, thus offering expensive but poor-quality education and graduating inadequately trained specialists (Beshimov, 2001). 10 NSC 2006, op cit 11 For example, only 7 percent of the university budget in Kyrgyzstan is paid by the government, the rest is drawn from tuition. At the university level, 88 percent of students in Kyrgyzstan (during 2005/2006) paid tuition. 12 See Drummond and DeYoung (2004) for a detailed discussion about the challenges of introducing national testing.

6

Every year, the government of Kyrgyzstan allocates around 5000 grants (budget places)

based on the needs of the country for different specialists. These days, priority is given

to pedagogical specialties as more than half of budget grants are for ‘future teachers’.

Unfortunately, because of low salaries and limited future opportunities, the teaching

profession is in less demand and therefore, those students who can afford to pay tuition

fees refuse state grants and choose professions other than teaching. Most students

who pay from their own pocket, study such specialties as management, economics, law

and humanitarian sciences, and generally prefer to be enrolled in private universities.

Children from low income families have fewer opportunities to enter higher education

institutions because of the poor quality of secondary education they receive.

There are two categories of post-secondary education students in Kyrgyzstan; full-time

and correspondence students. Full-time students attend school full-time with in-class

sessions. Correspondence students attend the university twice per year (once during

the winter break and another during summer), for intervals of usually 20-30 days.

During this time, these students receive intensive lecture sessions and assignments to

complete at home, and they take examinations. Nowadays, correspondence students

make up the vast majority of the total who graduate and who actually teach. One

explanation for this is that correspondence students who receive a diploma and

continue to teach come from rural areas where teaching is the only regular paying job.

However, it is widely reported that quality of learning of correspondence students is not

very intensive. There are many anecdotal evidences that some correspondence

students do not attend their “twice a year” sessions and simply pay to receive the

diploma. Teachers who graduated from correspondence courses are often regarded

not strong by school administrators and education officials.

Unfortunately, the great majority of students in pre-service teacher education programs

in higher educational institutions do not become teachers upon graduation. Every year,

between 1000 and 1500 people graduate from pre-service teacher education programs,

both state-funded and fee-funded13. Only about 30 percent of all these graduates take

teaching jobs at all, further exacerbating the serious teacher shortage (Open Society

Institute, 2002). For example, according to the National Statistics Committee’s report 13 Reeves (2003) notes that higher education institutions compete with each other for students and constantly attempt to expand their enrolments. These institutions are also “pumping out” fees from people by opening market-oriented, fee-paying course specialties in haste without sufficient resources, thus offering expensive but poor-quality education and graduating inadequately trained specialists (Beshimov, 2001).

7

only 524 out of 1,798 graduates (29.1 percent) from pre-service teacher training

institutions went on to teach in 2003-2004.14

As mentioned before, many of those who apply to pedagogical colleges and universities

do not plan on becoming teachers. Also, many students who receive low scores in the

National Scholarship Test, and were not qualified to enter other more prestigious

departments, are nonetheless admitted into pedagogical institutions/departments

because of the high demand for teachers and lower passing rates. Besides, extremely

meagre salary also does not attract many potential teachers. Many students apply and

are admitted even though administrators and faculty members are aware that they have

no “real” interest in teaching. Ironically, students are often open about their alternative

plans after graduation, usually citing low salaries, low prestige, and poor working

conditions as reasons for not going into teaching. Students often comment that they

enter pedagogical institutions and departments because they simply want a diploma or

because of family expectations.

To address the issue of teacher shortages, the Ministry of Education issued a decree in

1993 which obliges the graduates from the state-funded “budget” programs to be placed

in a school to teach two years before they are awarded their teaching certificate.15

However, only half of the graduates from state-funded courses go to the schools

assigned in their placements (Bekbolotov, 2000). In addition, the placement program

often allows new teachers to negotiate placement in preferred urban areas. For

example, 1984 graduates from pedagogic institutions were assigned to schools in 2004,

but only 270 of them were assigned to rural schools (Kyrgyzinfo, September 1, 2004).

To encourage the new graduates of teacher education institutions to join teaching, the

government of Kyrgyzstan and the Ministry of Education have been attempting to

provide these young people with various incentives. Especially, officials are trying to

attract new teacher education graduates to rural schools, by promising to create better

working conditions, or by providing the teachers with land plots from the village

governments. With the purpose of retaining young graduates of graduates of teacher

education institutions and colleges at rural public schools, the government of 14 National Statistics Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic [NSC] (2006). Education and Science in the Kyrgyz Republic. Bishkek: Ministry of Education, Science and Youth & Rural School Project funded by the World Bank. 15 Concessions are provided to married graduates as well as to those who got outstanding academic records. These graduates are allowed to choose their school of placement.

8

Kyrgyzstan introduced a new project titled “Deposit for Young Teachers” in 2004 with

the help of grants from the International Financial Institutions (Kanimetova, 2005). To

execute this program, the Ministry of Education of the Kyrgyz Republic organized a

competitive recruiting campaign for selecting beginning teachers. The main criteria for

their selection were: a teacher education diploma, possession of cultural-ethical norms

and commitment to the teaching profession. For this program, 200 beginning teachers

were to be selected, sign a contract and be credited 2000 som monthly in addition to

their salaries, for a total of 76, 000 som each that they can withdraw only after

completing their contracts.16 Beginning teachers selected for this program will have

undergone training and work three years at the schools to which they are assigned.

The government officials believe that retaining these selected young teachers at village

schools for three years will achieve its purpose, because after working in rural schools

three years the teachers will probably adapt to local conditions and continue to teach at

the same schools.

In-Service Teacher Education

New teachers who join teaching begin at the lowest salary scale, without “category”.17

There are frequent delays in payment due to budget constraints. Many teachers are

forced to take on extra work to earn more money. A standard teaching assignment is

16 to 18 teaching hours per week, but many teachers teach 25 or more hours per week;

thus, they have little or no time for professional development. Furthermore, many

teachers work on their farms or in household businesses after school to supplement

their incomes. Due to low payment and harsh economic conditions, many qualified

teachers have left the school system altogether and have taken better-paid jobs to

provide their families with basic necessities (United Nations Children’s Fund, 2001).

Teachers in Kyrgyzstan thus struggle with many problems, including teacher shortages,

unqualified colleagues, low payment, shortage of resources including textbooks,

unmotivated pupils and working and living in worsening conditions. The schools face

harsh teacher shortages because many teachers have left teaching. Official figures

16 Originally, it was announced that 40 beginning teachers would be selected for the “Deposit for Young Teacher” program. They were to be credited 3000 som monthly in addition to their salary, for a total of 108, 000 som each that they could withdraw after completing their contracts (Kyrgyzinfo, September 1, 2004). 17 There are such qualificational categories as “zero”, “two”, “one” and “high”. “High”, the highest category, offers the highest salary. Professional retraining and teaching experience serve as a prerequisite to confirm or upgrade a teacher’s category. This category is a standard base for determining a teacher’s salary.

9

claim 2863 vacant teacher positions in Kyrgyzstan, although the actual numbers are

estimated as double that (DeYoung & Santos, 2004). There is a long-standing shortage

of teachers for such subjects as English, Kyrgyz, Mathematics, Informatics (Computer

Sciences), History, Chemistry and Biology.

These shortages are especially disastrous in schools in villages and remote areas,

since many higher education graduates choose to stay in towns (Bekbolotov, 2000).

DeYoung and Santos (2004) observe that village schools experience a serious shortage

of teachers of English and Russian. Due to the shortage of teachers, many retired

teachers are called upon to teach in village schools. Many rural and remote mountain

schools are also forced to hire part-time higher education students with incomplete

teacher education.

Teachers also have to supplement their income by taking up extra work in order to fulfill

their material needs; many teach more hours or teach in more than one school.

Teachers work and live in difficult conditions. For example, in most schools there is no

longer any central heating in winter. Teachers also have lost the subsidies for the cost

of electricity and heating that the state formerly provided them.18

Teachers also struggle with a lack of teaching resources, including textbooks (United

Nations Children’s Fund, 2001). The break-up of the USSR necessitated designing and

publishing Kyrgyzstan’s own school textbooks, especially for social subjects; Soviet

textbooks with outdated information and Soviet ideology became irrelevant. However,

Kyrgyzstan found it difficult to break away from the old system in which, typically, a

pedagogical institute within the Ministry of Education wrote the textbooks, evaluated

them and approved them. The publication of new textbooks has been very slow; the

schools have faced shortages of textbooks and as a result have continued using the

Soviet textbooks. Although it recognises the seriousness of the issue, the Kyrgyz

government lacks resources to address the problem effectively; this has forced it to turn

to foreign assistance. Various external donors are now helping with contributions to

textbook publication and distribution. However, the newly published textbooks have

proved too expensive for many impoverished families to purchase or rent. Apart from

textbooks, many schools also continue to rely on resources from the Soviet time, for

18 Teachers formerly paid only 50 percent of the cost of electricity and were provided 1.5 tons of coal free of charge.

10

example, blackboards, chairs, visual aids, maps, and textbooks. However, most

furniture and equipment are on the verge of breaking, while most of the resources are

losing their relevance. Lack of resources is especially problematic for teachers of such

subjects as Physics, Chemistry and Computer Sciences (Informatics) because they are

unable to conduct demonstrations or practical experiences in their lessons.

In addition to teaching more hours per week and working in extra jobs, teachers now

find themselves in a “methodological vacuum” (Bekbolotov, 2000, p. 6), because they

can no longer attend professional development in-service courses or seminars regularly

(Kabylov, 2003; United Nations Children’s Fund, 2001). Bekbolotov (2000) estimates

that previously, around 12,000 to 15,000 teachers got training in national and oblast

institutes of professional development; nowadays, that number has declined to as low

as 3000. All the teachers in the Soviet Union had considerable professional training

and general education background in the subject areas. Among many opportunities for

upgrading teachers’ knowledge and skills, more regular courses were offered at the

Teacher Training Institutes, which operated at oblast (provincial) and national levels.

In-service teacher training or continuing teacher professional development was an

important aspect of Soviet education. Conceptualized as retraining and qualification

raising (perepodgotovka i povyshenie kvalifikatsii), in-service teacher education

programs in the Soviet Kyrgyz Republic were systematically implemented through the

state-funded Kyrgyz Institute of Education and other teacher re-training institutes in the

oblast (provinces). In-service training courses both on-site and off-site were of different

durations and varied from full time to part time and from ongoing, problem-based, and

goal-oriented to thematic. Additionally other seminars, theoretical and practical

conferences, research experiments, consultative meetings and competitions, such as

the Best Teacher of the Year, were part of professional development programs. But

since the 1960’s the dominant practice for teacher professional development was the

off-site one-month course (Kibardina, 1997). It was a requirement that all teachers, after

five years of service, attended monthly courses in the central and Oblast Education

department. Continuing teacher professional development was also monitored and

supported by city and district education departments under the supervision of the oblast

Education Department.

11

Under the Soviet Union half of the content of off-site courses was devoted to ideological

and political education where Marxist-Leninist ideology and Communist Party

achievements were emphasized. This was because school teachers had the mandate to

educate the “Soviet citizen”. The other half concentrated on specific subject content and

the development of pedagogy and introducing educational innovations (Kibardina, 1997).

The pedagogy of these courses was lectures, discussions and problem situations. Kerr

(1991) criticizes USSR teacher re-training,

“…the opportunities teachers had were in fact quite limited: A few days a year

spent in a state Institute for Teacher Improvement (Institut Usovershenstvovania

Uchitelei), an Institute for Qualification Raising (Institut povysheniia kvalifikatsii)….

The faculty at these institutes were not (in general; there were exceptions) highly

regarded by teachers, and the material they learned there often was not seen as

very relevant to their daily concerns on the job” (p. 5).

In post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan, scholars like Kibardina (1997) and Babaev (1994), have

studied different teacher re-training program components. However, since these have

been published in Russian and Kyrgyz, to many outsider-researchers this area appears

underresearched. Highlighting the issues of in-service teacher education practices in

post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan, Kibardina (1997) explains that teacher professional development

continues to be the responsibility of Kyrgyz Academy of Education (KAE) and Oblast

Teacher Retraining Institutes (OTRI), in collaboration with the city and district education

departments but, since independence, other institutions offer professional development

opportunities for teachers expanding the limited choices of the Soviet era.

However, foremost, the disintegration of the USSR has negatively affected teachers’

professional development opportunities because of the country’s general economic

decline. Training has become irregular and, because teachers are now required to share

some of the costs, such as transport and accommodation, courses are not affordable for

teachers. According to the OSI-Education Support Program Report (2002), “Professional

support and recognition of teachers decreased as the state failed to fulfill their legal

obligations to provide regular in-service training.” (p. 17)

Currently, imbalances and shortages of teachers in many subjects in rural locations are

catastrophic. Difficult living conditions and irregular payment of salaries mean that rural

schools do not attract fresh university graduates. To address teacher shortages schools

12

have begun using correspondence courses and/or part-time university students, retired

teachers and recruits directly from schools. However, by recruiting unqualified teachers

the quality of teacher performance has also deteriorated. This situation has emphasized

the need for serious consideration of diversifying in-service teacher education to meet

these contextual needs within the realities of tight budgets.

With the exception of the new opportunities provided by organizations other than

government, the structures and activities for teachers’ professional development

reflected those of Soviet in-service teacher education. Three main approaches (off-site

courses, school-based, and self-initiated activities) co-exist and supplement each other

in continuing teacher professional development programs in post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan.

Off-site courses included courses run by government Oblast Teacher Retraining

Institutes (OTRI) but, in addition, the city education department, in collaboration with

Kyrgyz Academy of Education, organized annual “January” and “August” conferences or

dekadas. There is a specific purpose why these months are chosen to bring most

school teachers together to develop them professionally. January and August are the

months when their pupils have winter and summer vacations thus it is a good

opportunity for them to involve in professional development. In recent past, teachers

were obliged to take unpaid leaves for January and August which further raised their

concerns about meager salary and their commitment to remain in the profession. The

government then decided to formalize teachers’ professional development in January

and August so they get paid for their attendance and participation. Moreover, schools

are also encouraged to organize subject dekadas within these two months in specific.

Teachers have opportunities for professional development in school-base activities.

School-based activities included subject methodology, mentoring beginning teachers,

and induction seminars for beginning teachers. Subject methodology was based on

departments of specific subject teachers, headed by an experienced colleague. Dekada

was usually of 10-days duration. This activity was initiated by the city education

department subject area components to support teachers of core subjects prepare a

plan of activities so as all city subject teachers should have professional development

activities in one particular school. The set of activities included lesson-demonstration

and co-curricular activities. After observing different lessons and activities teachers

analyzed and raised issues. So teachers are encouraged to share innovative ideas and

13

discuss related issues. The vice-principal monitors the department’s activities. Within

schools subject departments organize subject seminars at different times of the year.

The teachers leading the event prepare curriculum-related activities related to the

subject area and then a forum for joint discussion on observed lessons and on general

issues of teaching.

There are several ways beginning or new teachers get professional development

opportunities. In most schools, experienced teachers mentor beginning or new

teachers. Many young teachers reported that mentoring enabled them to learn

classroom management skills. Apart from mentoring, newly recruited teachers attended

induction seminars organized by their respective schools. They mostly report that they

have great difficulty with school documentation, such as lesson planning and

maintaining class registers. Some private schools, provided they have adequate

resources and commitment to professional development, offer systematic and

comprehensive professional development in their curriculum, syllabus, assessment and

instruction. Their programs of professional development are geared towards enabling

teachers to reconceptualize their role as professionals and encourage them to use

learner-centered approaches and are purposefully designed to acquaint them with the

nuances of the private school system. In some private schools, there is designated and

foreign-qualified teacher educator who takes responsibility for planning and conducting

professional development programs throughout the year, which range from skills-

oriented workshops, English language, computer skills and critical thinking to

developing assessment techniques, using tests and enriching their curriculum and

textbooks.

There are individual school innovations in the area of continuing teacher professional

development in Kyrgyzstan. For instance, in one government school a newly-created

position of vice-principal is equivalent to an in-house teacher educator who was

expected to plan professional development programs for teachers. This was the first

post of this kind. Private schools also carry out teacher appraisals to identify teachers’

needs and areas for improvement, but also to pay teachers according to their

competencies. Teacher appraisal usually requires compulsory demonstration lessons

and evaluation of those.

In some oblasts, similar to practices of private schools, the city education department

14

requires public school teachers to maintain a portfolio to demonstrate their involvement

in continuing professional development, which could include evidence of their improved

pedagogical skills, participation in teacher development courses and workshops, up-to-

date knowledge about political events in Kyrgyzstan and teachers’ involvement in

curriculum-related activities within and outside school. Moreover, each teacher was

required to observe other colleagues’ lessons and record those in their peer-observation

journals. School-based teacher professional development was considered useful in

many respects, since it allowed teachers to learn specific aspects of teaching and

utilized school-resources such as time and fellow teachers effectively.

Serving teachers in the Kyrgyz Republic take initiatives in their own professional

development. There were examples of diverse forms of self-initiated teacher

development. Teachers reported that they looked for opportunities outside school to

develop professionally. Among many other opportunities, teachers attended seminars

organized by the Soros Foundation Kyrgyzstan and award-bearing courses or short

term programs created a path for teachers to get experience of training outside the

country. However, many of these were restricted to teachers who had mastered the

particular foreign languages (predominantly English). Unfortunately, for this reason,

many teachers could not avail themselves of such opportunities. Some teachers

consulted colleagues from other schools and/or university faculty members to learn

more. Likewise, committed teachers organized workshops for colleagues to share what

they had learnt from courses or from implementing ideas in their classrooms. However,

they indicated that they got de-motivated when their colleagues showed little interest to

attend and did not appreciate their effort.

Teachers’ own individual and independent work in enriching or developing their own

syllabus also created opportunities for teachers to learn more. Teachers introduced

changes and enriched the syllabus within the limits of school and classroom realities

and to suit students’ diverse needs and styles of learning. Teachers were also

encouraged to disseminate their tested curriculum to other teachers by publishing in

newspapers.

Teachers read literature subscribed by their schools or accessed them in oblast libraries

to enrich their content and instructional knowledge. The national educational

newspapers from the Ministry of Education, Kut Bilim, Mektep, periodically publish

15

newly required documents for schools and teachers and thus, further increase their

knowledge of the wider educational context. Hence, as the EFA report (2000) reported,

despite the hardships, teachers in Kyrgyzstan continue to improve their professional

skills independently or gain experience from each other’s practices.

Issues of in-service teacher education

The most criticisms regarding continuing teacher professional development programs

are of low quality, the difficulty of access and the lack of supportive structures.

In Kyrgyzstan, most teachers are highly concerned about the deteriorating quality of

teacher professional development in terms of content and pedagogy, structure and

relevance. Most criticism is related to the Oblast Teacher Retraining Institutes (OTRI)

programs as they are outdated and have purely theoretical course content and

authoritarian pedagogy. Alongside these criticisms the issues of insensitivity towards

teachers’ needs; and teacher trainers’ poor professional expertise are noted. Due to its

poor quality of teacher training, OTRI does not seem to attract private schoolteachers to

attend their programs. Similarly, city education departments do not restrict private

schoolteachers’ attendance in the annual subject dekadas in January and August.

However, private school managements consider that it will not be beneficial for their

staff.

In the past, teacher trainers were expected to have classroom teaching experiences so

that they could work with school teachers. In this regard, some Oblast Teacher

Retraining Institutes (OTRI) teacher trainers are critical about their colleagues who have

no classroom teaching at schools. In addition, unsatisfactory salaries and the lack of a

supportive structure in the institute do not motivate them to develop professionally and

the institutes fail to recruit highly qualified professionals because of underfunding.

Within school-based teacher professional development mentoring is considered

beneficial for mentors and mentee teachers. But because of financial restraints

mentoring is not as systematic and regular a practice as compared to Soviet times and

its quality worsened due to several factors. Firstly, teachers’ heavy workload does not

allow them to spend time to observe lessons and discuss them with mentees. Thus,

with little support, mentee teachers struggle with school and classroom difficulties on

16

their own. Secondly, because there are fewer experienced teachers in the schools,

teachers with only two years’ experience are expected to mentor new teachers, thus, in

many respects, both were inexperienced. So the quality and authenticity of mentoring is

questioned. Some of the school-based courses, especially in private schools, are

critiqued over their heavy content and its impact on teachers’ everyday classroom

teaching. Providing support for application in the classroom seems to be overlooked in

an ambitious attempt to change teachers’ conceptions. Moreover, the generic nature of

seminars on teaching methods does not help teachers to implement them in specific

subject areas.

In relation to the value of discussing professional literature, teachers’ concerns are

associated with its inappropriateness to their specific needs and contextual realities.

However, teachers realize that the value of their own experience need to be extended

and they should take responsibility to disseminate that knowledge to other teachers.

Unfortunately, directly or indirectly, the worsening quality of programs or activities

reflects the overall economic crisis of the country and shrinking state funding on public

education.

The deteriorating situation of teacher professional development in post-Soviet

Kyrgyzstan is also associated with the lack of access to professional literature and

quality teacher professional development programs. To sustain and raise the quality of

courses at Oblast Teacher Retraining Institutes (OTRI), teacher trainers require

accessing to and engaging with quality professional literature and supportive

information technology. OTRI’s inability to find financial means to supply up-to-date

literature and equipment is a great concern for its administration and staff. Trainers are

expected to continue to use the resources they have inherited from the Soviet era which

cannot satisfy modern requirements of education in this context.

There are issues of access to continuing education for teachers of certain subjects in

the curriculum. Teachers of core curricular subject areas (mathematics, languages, and

history) have wider options to participate in courses and this generates disappointment

in teachers of subjects such as physical education and music.

Teachers mostly emphasize that the lack of access to professional literature is the

major challenge. Given the low-paid profession, teachers cannot afford the luxury of

17

subscribing to professional literature as compared to the plentiful access to materials in

the Soviet times. In addition, the prices for literature and periodicals have risen

considerably with the emergence of a free market. Government schools subscribe to

few periodicals from their budgets and sometimes these are deducted from teachers’

already small salaries. Many teachers complain of being forced to subscribe to journals

when they cannot afford to feed their family on their salary.

Few and intermittent issues and mostly of low quality literature do not solve teachers’

need to learn new content and pedagogy. Some teachers are even of the opinion that

Kyrgyzstan is isolated from information especially in the Russian language.

Furthermore, teachers of subjects which are newly introduced into the curriculum echo

that they do not get subject area methodological literature. For instance, the Kyrgyz

language gained official language status and became a compulsory subject at non-

Kyrgyz medium schools. Teachers argue that they lack specific pedagogy and articles

related to teaching and learning the Kyrgyz language in these schools. Although some

organizations continue to supply some of their periodicals, schools consider these as

‘gifts’ and believe that there is a need to have a country-wide thoroughly-systematic

process of subscriptions to professional literature in the future. Professional literature

produced outside Kyrgyzstan is largely inaccessible. Most teachers feel that in the

Kyrgyz Republic, access to professional literature is at a critical stage.

Other initiatives were suggested to encourage publications on professional innovations

and ideas and that it is important to consider involving the private sector in publication.

However, many feel that with the growing community of internet users, teachers can

develop professionally by accessing web-based materials and not only depend on

printed material. But since there is little available in Russian on the internet, which is

dominated by English sources, teachers cannot use this opportunity to any great extent.

School structures, such as provision of time for professional development, reasonable

teacher salaries, and support in providing programs for development and creating

teacher networks, are not well-thought through in in-service teacher education systems

in post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan. Lack of recognition of their hard work affects teachers’ low

motivation to develop professionally. In this, one of the sources for motivation, teachers’

salaries, played an influential role. In order to increase their income, most government

school teachers teach in two shifts and they do not have time for their professional

18

development. Currently, teachers’ salary is dependent on seniority and experience

which discourages younger teachers to work hard with original and creative ways of

teaching and learning as in most cases such efforts are not financially reimbursed.

In Kyrgyzstan, with the exception of the English language teachers’ association, there

are no teacher associations. Teachers identify the need for teachers to form teacher

associations to bring subject teachers together and enable them to learn from each

other. Some shared that they are willing to be proactive in establishing associations in

order to establish teacher networks. Teacher networks could help teachers to work

together for improvement and to voice their collective concerns at a time when they are

vulnerable from rapid changes in their personal and professional lives.

Areas for improvement

The aftermath of the collapse of USSR and independence has not brought positive

effects on the professional lives of the teachers of Kyrgyzstan. Rather, it has resulted in

uncertainties and increased responsibilities rather than the hope of support for teachers.

Teachers identify the need for their professional development as urgent because the

goals of education have been changed. As Mertaugh (2004) observed, “The content

and delivery of education needed to be changed in order to make education responsive

to the needs of the global economy.” (p. 155)

Post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan in-service teacher education practices and policies largely

reflect the Soviet ones. However, the issues raised here require the critical attention of

education policy makers. For instance, that the so-called reforms that aim to improve

teacher performance mostly lack empirical evidences. For the most part teachers’

professional development activities do not take into account teachers’ needs and thus

do not directly respond to teachers’ classroom realities. Moreover, the professional

development courses also devalue teachers’ existing expertise. As Niyozov (2004)

noted, “They [teachers in Tajikistan] are subjected to top-down approaches and outside-

in training, where their knowledge and wisdom are largely ignored.” (p. 57) Some grand

projects are implemented without much consideration and discussion. With this regard,

DeYoung (2004) shares the argument around Asian Development Bank funded

‘distance learning’ center initiative that was negotiated between the former education

minister and the Bank during the mid 1990s. The origin of policies might be better

explained by the fact that they met vested interests and needs for power rather than real

19

and practical needs. DeYoung (2004) stated,

“Much of the work was contracted or coordinated by one of the national

universities that a former Deputy Minister of Education was now the rector of,

and other universities were to provide program staff (if and when there was

money for them).” (p. 214)

He continues pointing out some issues that were raised regarding the budget of the

program which allocated little amount for program staffs and lack of formal job

descriptions for the staff.

Research continues to demonstrate that programs based on teachers’ needs make

more impact on teachers’ professionalism in practical terms. In this respect OTRI’s

diagnostic questionnaire of teachers’ needs is an excellent idea but it should be further

improved to make the training relevant to teachers. The courses funded by other groups

should be carefully analyzed. A report of OSI (2002) highlighted this, stating,

“With the increased presence of donor assistance, and co-operating partners

who have their own intentions and interests around the in-service training of

teachers, it is important to coordinate activities. Any activities in the field of

teacher training should be based on the demands and needs of strategic reform

and the overall system.” (p. 23)

In future reforms, the importance of the fifty years’ experience of OTRI should be taken

into account so that the strategies they used can be improved within the realities of

present conditions rather than ignoring it. For example the existing structure of seminars

should be further improved and reforms should target similar activities to make teacher

professional development programs more practical and needs-based. The January and

August conferences are cost-effective and could remain a credible approach, although

methods of delivery and content should be extensively discussed further. Currently,

teacher trainers’ own development seems to be taken for granted. But the personnel

are ageing (Bekbolotov, 1999; OSI, 2002) and as Kabylov (2003) says: “There is a

considerable need for continuing training for the teacher educators themselves” (p.5) so

that they can offer quality training.

In post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan, off-site in-service teacher education courses continue to be

seen as the panacea for low quality schools and the means of school improvement. But

20

all the training emphasized the development of teachers’ technical skills and not

developing their reflective teaching ability. The possibility of practice-centered

approaches for teacher development does not usually get the attention of policy

makers. Also the policies and reforms to promote school improvement and teacher

education largely ignore existing self-initiated and school-based teacher development

activities. Yet, it must be emphasize that all these activities and their structures require

considerable attention to their reform in the light of current realities and priorities.

Practice-centered approaches to teachers’ professional development such as action

research and reflective practice remain unknown and are not part of the current practice

of in-service teacher education. In addition, school-based teacher development is not

monitored and evaluated formatively. Where this is part of management responsibilities

the approach is critical rather than supportive. Also where schools cannot provide the

time or resources to support professional development and an in-house teacher

educator, they are unlikely to be able to expect much from teachers.

Additionally meager teacher salaries have resulted in low social status and low

motivation for teachers. Mertaugh (2004) points out teacher salaries are low in both

absolute and relative terms. ‘In absolute terms, they are only half of the minimum

consumption level for individuals, not to mention households. As a result, teachers lack

motivation and are compelled to work at other jobs in order to support themselves and

their families.” (p. 173). Similarly, Niyozov (2001) emphasizes the proposal of Marx and

Maslow that, “when basic human needs are threatened, talk about intellect and

education makes little sense.” (p. 363) Thus this basic need forces teachers to find

other solutions as Shamatov (2005) distinctly notes “Teachers also have to supplement

their income by taking up extra work in order to fulfill their material needs, many teach in

more than one school.” (p. 116)

Raising teachers’ salaries and providing fringe benefits such as releasing them from

paying electricity bills are considered important to retain teachers and to motivate them

for professional development. Mertaugh (2004) suggests comparisons with the health

service which has introduced several reforms to raise the salary of health workers and

suggested that “activities such as mentoring new teachers or providing community

education or remedial education could and should be recognized and compensated

through supplementary income.” (173) However, although raising salaries may motivate

21

teachers to develop professionally, it will not affect the quality of teaching and teacher

professional development substantially if supportive systems for professional

development are not considered as well as systematically implemented and monitored.

Thus, improving the existing supportive systems and establishing monitoring and

evaluation must be part of these reforms.

Currently, too, school teachers in Kyrgyzstan cannot access professional literature as

sources for their professional development. The EFA Report (2000) claims that

information related to modern teaching methods is unavailable and that low salaries

makes access to professional literature impossible for individual teachers. To continue

the Soviet practice of making subscriptions mandatory is, under present circumstances,

a burden not a solution. Many teachers resented this practice when their salary is not

enough to feed their families let alone buy and read the newspapers. In 2005, an open

letter, voicing teachers’ concerns, to the president and minister of education, has

resulted in stopping these compulsory subscriptions.

At the moment teachers in post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan seem to be caught in a dilemma. On

the one hand is their struggle for personal survival as a priority. On the other hand is

their mission, as professionals, to educate the next generation better for the good of

society, which makes them continue to work within harsh conditions. Many government

teachers felt isolated and abandoned by the state. There are many teachers who look

for external help but there are some who thought this is not a solution. Rather they

recognize their proactive role in solving their professional issues themselves or by

making a considerable contribution. For example, teachers propose teaching materials

developed and tested by teachers to support them in the ‘methodological vacuum’ and

teacher networks with the potential to support and enable teachers to contribute to

building a more just, fair and equitable society.

References

Apple, M. (1993). Official knowledge. NY: Routledge.

Babaev, D. (1994) Didakticheskyie osnovy profetsionalnogo stanovlenia uchitelia fiziki v

protsesse nepreryvnogo obrazovania. Unpublished Doctor of Pedagogical

Sciences dissertation, Academy of Sciences, Bishkek.

Bekbolotov, T. B. (1999) Kyrgyz Republic country report on education for all (Bishkek,

Ministry of Education, Science and Culture). Available online at:

22

http://www2.unesco.org/wef/countryreports/ kyrgyz/contents.html (accessed 10

October 2003).

Beshimov, B. (2001). Mission of Osh State University. Ekho Osha. October 20, 2001.

DeYoung, A. (2001). West meets East in Central Asia: competing discourses on

education reform in the Kyrgyz republic. Unpublished manuscript.

DeYoung, A. (2002). West meets East in Central Asia: competing discourses on education reform in the Kyrgyz republic. Journal of Educational Research, Policy and Practice, 3(3), 3-45.

DeYoung, A. (2004) On the current demise of the ‘Action plan’ for Kyrgyz education

reform: a case study, in: S. Heyneman & A. DeYoung (Eds) The challenge of

education in Central Asia (Greenwich, CT, Information Age Publishing), 199–224.

DeYoung, A. (2004). On the current demise of the “Action Plan” for Kyrgyz education reform: A case study. In S.P. Heyneman & A. DeYoung (Eds.), The challenges of education in Central Asia (pp. 199-224). Greenwich, Connecticut: Information Age Publishing Inc.

DeYoung, A., & Santos, C. (2004). Central Asian educational issues and problems. In S.P. Heyneman & A. DeYoung (Eds.), The challenges of education in Central Asia (pp. 65-80). Greenwich, Connecticut: Information Age Publishing Inc.

Drummond, T., & DeYoung, A. (2004). Perspectives and problems in education reform in Kyrgyzstan: A case of national scholarship testing. In S.P. Heyneman & A. DeYoung (Eds.), The challenges of education in Central Asia (pp. 225-242). Greenwich, Connecticut: Information Age Publishing Inc.

Heynemann, S. (2000). From party/state to multiethnic democracy: Education and social cohesion in Europe and Central Asia. Education Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 22 (2), 173-191.

Holmes, B., Read, G.H., & Voskresenskaya, N. (1995). Russian Education: Tradition and Transition. New York: Garland Publishing Inc.

Ibraimov, O. (Ed.). (2001). Kyrgyzstan: Encyclopedia. Bishkek: Center of National Language and Encyclopedia.

Kabylov, T. (2003) Issues of government-based in-service teacher education

programmes in Kyrgyzstan: what is needed for improvement? Paper presented

at the CESS 4th Annual Conference, Harvard, MA.

Kanimetova, A. (2005). Vvedenie “Depozita molodogo uchitel’ya” ne reshit polnost’iu problemu nehvatki uchitelei v shkolah Kyrgyzstana. Kabar news. February 16, 2005.

Kerr, S. (1991) Beyond dogma: teacher education in the USSR, Journal of Teacher

Education, 42(5), 332–349.

Kibardina, L. P. (1997) Protsess obuchenia v sisteme povyshenia kvalifikatsii

23

pedagogov Kyrgyzskoi Respubliki (Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan).

Korth, B., & Schulter, B. (2003). Multilingual education for increased interethnic

understanding in Kyrgyzstan. On-line article. Cimera Publications. Retrieved

February 28, 2003 from http://www.cimera.ch/files/biling/en/MLG_Text1.pdf

Mertaugh, M. (2004) Education in Central Asia, with particular reference to the Kyrgyz

Republic, In S. Heyneman & A. DeYoung (Eds) The challenge of education in

Central Asia (Greenwich, CT, Information Age Publishing), 153–180.

Niyozov, S. (2001) Understanding teaching in post-Soviet, rural, mountainous

Tajikistan: case studies of teachers’ life and work. Unpublished doctoral thesis,

University of Toronto, ON.

Niyozov, S. (2001). Understanding teaching in post-Soviet, rural, mountainous Tajikistan: Case studies of teachers’ life and work. Unpublished doctoral thesis. University of Toronto.

Niyozov, S. (2004). The effects of the collapse of the USSR on teachers’ lives and work

in Tajikistan, in: S. Heyneman & A. DeYoung (Eds). The challenge of education

in Central Asia (Greenwich, CT, Information Age Publishing), 37–64.

Open Society Institute Education Support Program (2002) Education development in

Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan: challenges and ways forward. Available

online at: http://www.osiedu.net/esp/events/materials/final.doc

Open Society Institute: Education Support Program. (2002). Education Development in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan: challenges and ways forward. Retrieved May 10, 2003 from http://www.osi-edu.net/esp/events/materials/final.doc

Osorov, Z. (2002, October 18). Higher education in Kyrgyzstan is big business. Times of Central Asia.

Reeves, M. (2003). Markets, “missions” and languages of Higher Education reform in Kyrgyzstan. Paper Presented to the CESS 4th Annual Conference. Cambridge, MA, USA. 4th October 2003.

Romanchuk, N. (2002). Research paper: Bribery in Kyrgyz State Universities: Is there anything to worry about? Introduction to methods of Social Research, ICP 100. December 16th, 2002. Retrieved March 19, 2004 from http://uk.geocities.com/balihar_sanghera/qrmnadezhdaromanchukbriberyinuniversities.html

Shamatov, D. (2005) Beginning teachers’ professional socialization in post-Soviet

Kyrgyzstan: challenges and coping strategies. Unpublished doctoral thesis,

University of Toronto, ON.

Sutherland, J. (1999). Schooling in the new Russia: Innovation and change, 1984-1995. London: Macmillan & ST. Martin Press.

24

Tabyshaliev, S. (Ed.). (1979). Torzhestvo idei velikogo oktiab’ria v Kirgizii. Frunze: Ilim.

The EFA 2000 Assessment - Country Report: Kyrgyzstan. Retrieved on March 19, 2004 from http://www2.unesco.org/wef/countryreports/kyrgyz/contents.html

UNDP Report. (2003). The Kyrgyz Republic. Millennium Development goals: Progress Report. Bishkek. Retrieved March 20, 2004 from http://www.undp.kg/english/publications/2003/mdgpr2003.pdf