Astana, Kazakhstan Report of what it's like to live there - 07/23/15
Personal Experiences from Astana, Kazakhstan
School Name:
QSI Astana
Background Information:
1. Are you the parent of a child(ren) attending this school? A teacher at the school? Or both?
Parent
2. What grade or grades do/did your children attend at the school? During what year(s) did they attend the school?
Preschool, Kinder, 2nd, 3rd
3. During what years were you affiliated with this school?
2014-2015
4. What was your reason for living in the city where the school is located (e.g., government, military, corporate, NGO, retired)?
Government
5. Are other schools available to expatriates in this city? Why did you choose this particular school?
All embassy employee children came here at the time we arrived. Also the British school would not have allowed one of my children to start Kindergarten with her birthday being after September 1 (though she was ready academically and socially) and another one would move back a grade due to her age (at least, that is the info I received upon inquiry).
Admissions & Welcome:
1. How would you rate the school's support and welcome/integration of new students and their families, and why?
A
Wonderful! Administration is quick to learn the names of new students and welcome them.
Administration & School Procedures:
1. Describe the general climate of the grade level that you teach or your child attends:
Very international. Example of one of my childrens' classes is about 13 students from 9 different countries.
The local children who attend aren't actually the majority (as is the case with some schools).
Classes are kept small. In one of my childrens' classes they exceeded their 15 student cap about mid year and couldn't find a replacement teacher so they hired another teaching assistant to help out making the grand total 18 students, 1 head teacher and 2 assistants. Love it!
Teachers are fantastic! All very different, for sure. Some are strict and keep their classes in line at all times, others take a kind approach to directing students but all very qualified. Almost all head teachers are native English speakers but if not, their English is fantastic. We have had a couple of on par teachers who have been good but not stellar but they seem to last only about a year and leave.
Most students in the lower grades seem quite respectful of others and their teachers. One of my children was teased and when it was found out by the teacher and administration, it was dealt with swiftly. So grateful for that!
2. For the following attributes, down to the next blank box, grade your experience at the school on a scale of A (excellent) to F (unacceptable/terrible) and provide comments:<br><br>Overall fair and equitable treatment of all students and families:
A -
3. How is the overall communication between teachers and parents, and the administration and parents? How is communication facilitated?
B+
Teachers are supposed to send emails to communicate weekly? bi-weekly? Most teachers are great at this but a couple aren't so much. I never had an issue with not being able to email or talk to a teacher about a specific issue that my kid was having though. They always got right back to me or made an appointment to speak with me in person.
The one thing I have noted is that a select few of the teachers will tell my children something and expect them to bring the information home to me. Sometimes they forget, sometimes I am unsure if it is real first-hand information I should follow or is lacking detail, and sometimes they tell me the night before it is due. Most teachers who keep up on the newsletters or emails don't have this issue but others may.
4. Services for gifted students who need academic challenge and students with learning difficulties:
C
None, sadly. Though, I think they do as best they can. Students who seem to excel in math will move up to the next grade level's math course while their class' math is in session. I have an IEP for one of my children and the academic director took it to my daughter's teacher and gave her ideas on things she could do with my child (since it was the academic director's former area of expertise) but sadly, with her duties, she doesn't have time to do much more than she did. My child is getting outside services via the internet. There is a girl with Down's Syndrome and a boy with Autism who have special helpers with them all day but I think their families or other agencies hired them but am unsure. They attend class with the other students. I love that my children are able to associate with them and have them as classmates. It has been a learning opportunity for all.
5. Aside from school fees, are there required expenses such as uniforms, laptops/tablets, musical instruments, or field trips that parents are expected to cover? What are the approximate costs?
No uniforms!!! Love this aspect since uniforms are hard to keep clean and expensive.
You can purchase an expensive lunch at the school (almost US$5 for kids 6 and up I think and for those younger it is about US$4) but we opt to send our kids with a home-packed lunch.
Not sure about the other stuff. My kids weren't required to buy anything else. I think we did have to send a few boxes of tissue and hand sanitizer and a few supplies but that's it. It wasn't a huge list of supplies that we have had at other schools.
6. Availability and variety of after-school activities for various ages:
C
7. Maintenance of appropriately high standards for all students:
A
Definitely.
8. Homework assigned (quality, quantity):
A
Perfect. I told the kindergarten teacher that I didn't like homework for kindergarteners much and she sent me home with the homework books and told us to work at our own pace. Fantastic! It seems a little much for my 3rd grader but I think she just is a perfectionist and gets distracted so it takes her longer. Every teacher is different but I suggest that if you have a problem, talk to the teacher and work it out.
9. Administration-parent communication:
B
Usually pretty good but I have found that it is best to email the director, academic director, and the school secretary all at once then I am almost sure to get a response.
Again, once in a while I haven't seen anything on the newsletter and my child is telling me they are participating in something and they need this or that for it or it's something I would like to attend yet I don't have the details.
10. Teacher-student communication:
A
Depends on the student really.
11. Academics, answer the following questions "yes" or "no" with an explanation if appropriate:<br><br>Are there any classes or subjects where students are not appropriately challenged?
No - at least in younger grades
12. Does your child receive any special-needs assistance or instruction at this school? If yes, what types? Who provides services and where:
No
13. Does the school offer a wide variety of elective or non-core classes such as art, music, and drama?
Yes
14. Please describe any classes or programs that you believe are missing:
Just more structured after-school activities.
15. Are there academic requirements such as trips or other activities that cost money in addition to school fees?
Yes. Field trips are an extra cost. If your child participates on a team, it costs when they travel for tournaments, etc.
16. What activities do you feel are missing?
Ballet, jazz, martial arts, orchestra (I don't think this is available), gymnastics for after-school activities.
I think they have had martial arts included one quarter (maybe a teacher stepped up) and once they also did gymnastics but it's not continuous. I realize that they don't have a pool for swimming and stables for horseback riding but the other things can be done with the facility that they have now.
17. Have your children participated in the activities offered? If no, please indicate why:
Yes.
18. Does the school provide appropriate assistance to new students?
Yes.
19. Please describe any problem areas or challenges in social interaction at the school:
None
Academics & Resources:
1. What personal or academic counseling resources are available at this school? Is there a dedicated college counselor at the school? Is he/she familiar with universities worldwide?
A+
Teachers and administration have been readily available to discuss any concerns I have had with my children. When one of my children was having trouble remembering the math she had learned at the beginning of the year, her teacher stepped up and asked if my daughter could stay with her Study Hall days and work on it with her. Her MAP scores the next year exploded. This is a stellar teacher and, I realize, won't always be the case but most teachers I have come across are willing to help where they can. The preschool teacher has stepped up and taken my half-day preschooler for a little longer if I have been sick or have an appointment once in a while. The administration has been helpful in writing letters for me when we feel like outside services would be beneficial for my children's academic progress.
2. Does the school have a library? How large is it? How updated are the books? Can students borrow books to read at home?
?
Unsure about all of the materials since my kids are young but they definitely have fiction and non-fiction. My kids have used some of the library books to write reports.
3. How are information technology resources at the school. Are they up-to-date? Is there a computer lab?
A
They start with technology class in Kindergarten
4. Describe the physical education resources at the school. Is there a gym? A swimming pool? Are there playing fields or tennis courts available?
A- Everybody has PE though not daily.
5. What is the approximate teacher-to-student ratio in the grades that your child attended?
A
Very good. Cap is at 15 per class.
6. Are Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses available in upper grades? If this is an IB school, is the full diploma required of all students?
?
I know they have AP courses but I am unsure in what.
7. Is the amount and type of homework generally appropriate for the age and grade of the students?
Yes
8. What fine arts electives are available (music, drama, visual arts)?
A - for the size of school, it is great
In the younger grades, music and art are part of the curriculum. I love it. There has been drama as an after-school activity for 8 and up (I think) and they put on a lovely musical for such a small school this past year "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat"
9. Are the teachers at the school required to speak English as a first language--or at least fluently?
Yes - some of the assistants' English isn't quite as good but some of them have great English and the head teachers always are native English speakers or have fantastic English.
10. What services are available for gifted/advanced students at the school? Please describe your experience with these services, if applicable.
No
11. What extra-curricular activities (including sports) are available at this school? Have your children participated in these activities? What activities do you feel are missing at the school?
Yes but not structured activites.
After-school activities are held every day though one of the days is actually "Study Hall." This is an area where this school is lacking and others are ahead. The teachers and assistants all pick something which they will teach once a week. There are usually 4 or 5 to choose from per day and you pick one for each day and your child goes to that for the quarter. Most are free but the ones that you have to pay for seem to about the same cost as the U.S. Those ones are usually dance or martial arts classes. The other ones you don't pay for are things like Outdoor Games, Basketball, Bingo, Doll-making, Quilling, Educational Computer Games, Chess, and the like. The British school did invite some students to come to their swimming lessons after school but I am unsure if that will continue. Older students who wish to participate in sports do have the opportunity. I know they have soccer and basketball teams but am unsure about others. One teacher stepped up to teach guitar as well but I'm unsure if that will continue.
It was brought to the attention of administration that we would like some more structured activities to be included in the choices, and personally, it would be nice if they could be included with the price of tuition because tuition is quite high. Sadly, on of the assistants to the administrators said, "do you know how much work that is to put it together?" Not the attitude I like to hear but I'm giving the benefit of doubt to the administration who didn't actually make the comment and hope they can find a solution.
Social & Emotional Well-Being:
1. Do expatriate students socialize with local students at the school? Are both groups successfully integrated into the school culture?
Our children have. We've been to birthday parties for both locals and expats but usually our playdates have been with expats but hoping to branch out a bit this year. There just isn't a huge Kazakh population at the school.
2. Are there are any problems with exclusionary behavior, cliques, or bullying at this school? Please describe any problems your children may have experienced in this area.
No. My expat child was actually teased by other expat children but, like I said, it was dealt with quickly.
Overall Impressions:
1. What is the greatest strength of this school?
For our kids, it's because it is small. For older kids this may be a minus but for us, we like it. All of the younger grade teachers know my kids and some of the older grades do also. All of the administration knows them, they know me. I feel comfortable there and so do my kids. I feel like my kids are getting more individual attention with the teachers due to the small class sizes.
2. Greatest challenge?
Hmm. How about challenges since I can't pick?
Enrollment is booming so I am unsure of the consequences since they just built a new facility and it already becoming to small.
Communication, like most every school I have encountered.
Need to revamp after-school activities offered
3. Would you choose this school again? Why?
Absolutely!
Again: small class sizes with individualized attention, caring administration and teachers, good academics, a very international environment, little to no bullying, expat administration and teachers help to ensure that local traditions don't win over following curriculum and educational practices from the U.S. (though we do get to participate in many Kazakh traditions and holidays which I am very grateful for). Also, I remember us coming in the middle of the year and me being so worried that my kids wouldn't make friends (one cried after school for a month because of it at the last school she went to). But, I think because of the transient nature of most of the children, including and making new friends at school becomes engrained in them. No tears with this school makes for happy kids and one happy Momma!
