Our program is designed to empower you with the knowledge, skills, and perspectives needed to navigate the complex landscape of multilingual or trilingual education in Kazakhstan. Our faculty believes that language is not just a tool of communication but a gateway to understanding culture, forging identity, and championing social justice. We recognize the critical importance of language in addressing issues of educational equity, diversity, and social justice. You will engage in meaningful dialogues and research to examine and address the role of language/s in creating equity, diversity and social justice within the contexts of classrooms, schools, universities, the workplace and communities.
In our program, you will develop the capacity to engage in thoughtful discussions, articulate your ideas effectively, and engage in critical reflection on the intricate interplay of language, culture, and identity. This deeper understanding will empower you to explore the profound connections between these elements and enable you to recognize and ponder the central role that language and culture play in shaping:
- the self (our identities)
- society, community and nation-building
- educational spaces and the importance of fostering inclusive and culturally responsive learning and teaching environments.
Our students engage in core courses such as Educational Context and Reform in Kazakhstan, Foundations of Multilingual Education, Multilingual Schools and Multilingual Curriculum Development and Assessment. We also offer a range of elective courses such as Application of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) in teaching, Language Planning and Policy, and Language Policy and Education Reform across contexts. In these courses, our students gain extensive knowledge about multilingualism in and outside of educational spaces and develop the qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods research skills to conduct rigorous, independent Master’s thesis research on an important topic of their choice.
In addition, our students develop important research skills during three research courses and in their work with their Thesis Supervisors during the second year of the program dedicated to their Master’s Thesis research that culminates with the Thesis Defense and submission of the Master's Thesis.