AlmaU Winter School Diaries: First day

What should a modern university be? What needs to be changed today? How to manage these changes? Answers to these questions were sought by the participants of the XXIII Annual Winter School for teachers and university staff which started at AlmaU today.

The theme of the season: "Modern University: access to a new audience." This year, the winter school had 122 participants. They were :  40 - teachers of AlmaU, 38 - teachers of IAB College, 20 - Abay KazNPU, 19 – Zhubanov ARSU, as well as teachers of universities such as Al-Farabi KazNU, Asfendiyarov KazNMU them., Sh. Esenov KSTU and Satpayev University.

Traditionally, first a campus tour was organized for the participants of the event, they saw an innovative museum, a new building of AlmaU Knowledge Building, laboratories and a creative zone for students.

The first day of the winter school began with the official opening of the project.

Almagul Kanagatova, First Vice Rector, Director of AlmaU Institute for Educational Development, addressed the guests and participants.

“Traditional school and university are receding into the past. The system, where university teachers pass on knowledge, give courses and lectures, and then conduct tests on them, will simply become meaningless in the future, ” said Almagul Kanagatova.

These words provoked a lively discussion among the school participants. A. Kanagatov acquainted the participants with the training program, too. Trainings, which participants took for 3 days, were conducted by several speakers, which made the learning process more effective and more interesting.

“Team Teaching today, in order to capture the whole audience, cannot be taught alone. It’s very cool when you master it along with someone close in spirit who understands you, who supports you, if necessary and then it will be a successful project. ”- Almagul Kanagatova.

The training began with a motivating 3-hour speech by Gulmira Kurganbayeva, AlmaU rector. Gulmira Amanzholovna told about the management of innovative processes in the field of education. Why don't we use genetic and psychological testing in education? What is the competitiveness of people in front of robots? The participants and the speaker answered these and many other questions together - most of the meeting was held in an interactive format.

The discussion on the topic of robot workers caused a general revival - how much artificial intelligence can replace people in a variety of activities, including teaching? What are the prospects of robotization? What is more important in this matter - social responsibility or economic benefits - this issue provoked the participants to a hard discussion.

After lunch, there were 5 more thematic trainings for the participants, the guests were divided into groups.

The first training on the topic "Restart of pedagogical design of educational programs. Innovative technologies and methods in education” were conducted by Asel Aryn, Dean of the Graduate School of Management, together with Olzhas Sakenov, Master of Education, a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania. The group considered universities and educational programs that should be in a modern university. Participants also learned about the skills that will be needed in 2020, 10 future skills, future professions and much more.

Tomorrow participants will attend the presentation of AlmaU educational products, body orientation and work with voice.

“Modern University: Entering the New Audience” Winter School is 5 days of super-intensive work to transform teachers in development of new innovative products, and reloading of managerial competencies of university staff. During the winter school, participants will have daily intensive work, trainings, master classes, guest lectures and work with mentors.