TRILINGUAL EDUCATION POLICY IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN KAZAKHSTAN: TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND CLASSROOM PRACTICES
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Date
2016-05
Authors
Iyldyz, Leila
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Graduate School of Education
Abstract
The purpose of this qualitative PhD study is to explore how secondary school teachers in
Kazakhstan interpret and appropriate trilingual education policy. The goal of the new policy is
that future generations will be at least trilingual (Kazakh, Russian, and English). However,
there is not yet an explicit written trilingual education policy or clear guidance for
implementation in schools. This study examined three research questions: 1) How do teachers
understand the language policy and trilingual education policy in particular in the context of
Kazakhstan? 2) What do teachers think the policy means for their classroom practices? and 3)
How do teachers appropriate the trilingual language policy in their own classrooms? The
sample included ten teachers who teach Sciences and Mathematics in English and five
History of Kazakhstan teachers who teach in Kazakh in five schools located in historically
Russian- speaking areas. The conceptual framework draws upon a language policy and
planning “onion” (Ricento & Hornberger, 1996), internal and external supports and
hindrances pertinent to teacher beliefs and practices (Buehl & Beck, 2015), a policy
interpretation and policy appropriation lens (D. C. Johnson, 2013), teacher agency (Biesta,
Priestley, & Robinson, 2015), and linguistic culture (Schiffman, 1996, 2006). The findings
stem from the data collected through interviews with teachers and observations of classes they
teach. It was found that teachers perceive their roles as appropriators of trilingual policy and
exercise agency through the lens of their own beliefs. Teachers’ personal qualities fuelled by
the ideology of patriotism and the national competitiveness agenda serve as a foundation for
their agency. Their explicit aim is helping students to learn new subject content and acquire
linguistic competences. Against the difficulties teachers face, including lack of ready-for-use
textbooks and adequate training in L2 methodologies as well as limited linguistic proficiency,
they find ways and spaces for making modifications in teaching for the benefit of their
students. In the context of Kazakhstan, it is critical to recognise teacher agency in policy
processes. Their beliefs about policy and the ways they affect their classroom practices should
be taken into account at other policy levels and research.
Description
Keywords
Type of access: Restricted, language policy, linguistic culture, policy appropriation, policy interpretation, teacher agency, teacher beliefs, trilingual education
Citation
Iyldyz, L. (2016). Trilingual education policy in secondary schools in Kazakhstan: teachers’ beliefs and classroom practices. Graduate School of Education