Former Majilis deputy Murat Abenov strongly criticized the educational programs of Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools (NIS) for lacking national values. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.
In his opinion, all schools in Kazakhstan should follow uniform state educational standards. National values should be equally implemented by all educational institutions.
"I have been criticizing NIS for many years. I always asked: 'Why does this school have some special program? Why do these schools not adhere to the policy of introducing our national values?' I looked at their programs: topics related to Kazakhstan are catastrophically few. The main emphasis is on globalization, foreign policy, and so on," he said.
Abenov noted that despite the huge funds allocated to NIS from the state budget, the level of student upbringing leaves much to be desired.
The former deputy also criticized the privileged status of the schools. According to him, there should be no educational institutions with special conditions in Kazakhstan, and all students should be equal.
"Why should we feed NIS students three free meals a day just because they are good at math or English? What about a child in a village who will become a tractor driver tomorrow? Why don't we feed him three times a day? If a child does not know English, should he not be fed?" Abenov questioned.
Furthermore, he emphasized that graduates should not be issued certificates and diplomas for non-compliance with the Kazakh language standard, and schools themselves should return the allocated money to the state.
The editorial board sent a request to the NIS press service to find out the organization's position regarding Murat Abenov's statements.
Earlier, Kursiv reported that Abenov called for depriving NIS of privileges.