Professional development of specialists from Abai University

Teachers and researchers of Abai University regularly improve their qualifications in leading educational institutions of the world. Thus, Zarina Kanafina, a Department of Russian Language and Literature teacher, was trained at the Summer Institute of Pskov State University. Together with her, the programme was attended by the Head of the Department of Oriental Philology and Translation, PhD Nazym  Konkabaeva, as well as the leading specialist of Education Management School Asylzat Kudaibergenova. During the internship, the participants visited three major Russian universities: RUDN University, Pushkin State Russian Language Institute and St. Petersburg State University of Economics.

The Summer Institute brought together teachers and researchers from 10 Asian and European countries. The programme`s main theme was the study of Russian as the language of interethnic communication, which is topical today. Representatives of different nations and cultures, including Belarusians, Kazakhs, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Armenians, Abkhazians, Hungarians, Serbs, Mongols and Kyrgyz, shared their unique traditions and linguistic features through the perspective of the Russian language.

The programme included not only educational but also cultural events. That underlines the inextricable link between language and culture. The participants visited the historical land of Pskov, monasteries, churches, museums and the museum-reserve of A.S. Pushkin "Mikhailovskoye", where the great poet was in exile and created his famous works, such as "Eugene Onegin". It was an unforgettable journey for teachers so it allowed them to think more deeply about literary works through understanding their context and the author`s life story.

Upon their return, the teachers were re-energised to share their acquired knowledge and experience with their students, contributing to the development of science and education.