Meet the youngest school principal – NU Graduate

As the continuation of my superhero blogs, today we mention Shakarim Seisenbai – the youngest school principal and he is only 27 years old and he is a graduate of Nazarbayev Unviresity Master’s Program. Man who answered to all critics who doubted about the quality of NU Masters programs. A man who wants to bring changes in, make innovations and break stereotypes.

He wants to create and make investments in his school. This is something rarely practiced in mainstream schools in Kazakhstan. By the way, attraction of investments is not the only thing that Shakarim Seisenbai plans to implement in 54th lyceum (the school where he is principal). He pointed his global plans in Facebook, entitled “50 steps of school education” and detailed the plan of action until September 2018:
– Create a teacher’s room with all the facilities for teachers so that they can develop and learn from each other.
– Develop functional areas for students (for example, open space sites and places for co-working).
– Organize various clubs for students (Media club, Photo club, Cooking club, Drama club).
– Create a multi-functional office, a kind of HUB inside the school, where there will be trainings, seminars and various meetings.
So there are 4 main goals on the way to the school of the new generation proposed by this young brave principal. It is obvious that to achieve these goals, of course, his school needs funding. Already there are different stakeholders who were not indifferent, who expressed a desire to support an open initiative, but still not solved the issues.
Recently, he attended a meeting in the Mazhilis (White House) on topical issues of the education system, where one of the topics was the role of board of trustees. The Board of Trustees is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that unites on a voluntary basis all those who are interested in the development of schools. So, taking advantage of his position, he wants to announce a meeting to the society by hash tag #make54greatagain and create such a board of trustees that will really help the school, and together the school will achieve its goals.
So if there is still a gap in your plans after graduation do not forget to consider the school principal position!

How to cope with deadlines when you should focus on your thesis?

Photo credit: http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/3rxmp2

The major deadlines for the thesis are coming and most of us are challenging to accomplish multiple tasks at the same time. Personally, I also have some issues since I have children and can not run away from my responsibilities. I have noticed that my groupmates are tired, some of them have the problems with procrastination, some are nervous and all of us are waiting for the Viva Voce and the thesis submission. However,  even though it is a very busy time we should be “kind to our mind” (as written in the Sky Walk)  and have a good rest, go out and walk, do sport, speak with friends and family but keep focused. It is realistic if you have a clear plan and to do list. Frankly saying, sometimes I can not follow my plan but it is not the reason to blame myself. I make adjustments and if I am incapable to accomplish the task in time I ask the course instructor or the supervisor to extend the deadline. Fortunately, our Professors are very kind and student-centered, they always support us. Speaking of the courses and thesis,  I would like to share my overall reflection about the education in Master program at GSE.

In the second year of the Master program, we had two intensive sessions and seven compulsory courses. I started to nervous when I realized that I have less time for the independent work with a thesis. Currently, I came to the decision that every assignment and new knowledge gained is connected to thesis and today I can use the excerpts of writing assignments, major implications and broad outlook in my thesis (keep in mind the APA while doing so). For instance, I am planning to use the personal conceptual framework about the connection between the globalization and language which was the assignment for the course. Also, several courses discussed the individual approach, differentiation, and equity of learners in multilingual classrooms which is also necessary to state while discussing the problem statement of the thesis. Moreover, now while writing the reflection I am doing the step back and thinking about further directions and limitations of my study because it is also the process of analysis considering the contribution of courses and new insights they provide. The course English for the Thesis writing itself is planned to help students with concerns, challenges, and misconceptions since every two weeks we do self-revision, peer revision and reflect on our progress of writing a thesis. So the main idea of my blog is to say that when you do assignments for courses relate them to your study, keep your thesis in mind and vice versa keep new insights from the courses in mind while thesis writing, this is an interconnected process.  Then you will not nervous about the deadlines because you won’t forget your thesis it progresses with you.

Overall, the learning experience at NUGSE is always insightful, engaging, sometimes challenging and the process which changes your mind. I would like to thank all professors, course instructors, TAs, my groupmates for their contribution to new me. I never had so many influential people in my life. I hope to reflect the baggage of knowledge which I gained in my future directions and realize my dreams with the intellectual empowerment obtained at NUGSE.

To translate or not to translate?

 

photo credit: https://theviewfromsarisworld.com/2015/10/14/the-not-quite-nihilistic-question-to-be-or-not-to-be/

A recent assignment on Academic Kazakh brought up another controversial issue related to Kazakh language – translating international words and terminology into Kazakh. The task involved checking and correcting the translations done by previous year students. Reporting and reflecting on the completed work triggered a heated debate in class on some issues connected with translating terminology.

Firstly, some, including me, were in doubt whether we have the right to make up new words in Kazakh, if we ourselves are just learning Academic Kazakh. Others felt that we, as researchers in the field, are responsible for translating, as “If not us, who?” For example, the word “translanguaging” is used a lot in multilingual education and is researched by several of my group mates. However, it does not have a translation in Kazakh. Well, it did not have until one of my group mates translated it as “транстілдесу” [transtildesu], which, in my opinion, sounds nice and is an example of a successful translation.

Another controversial issue was translation of words which are internationally common. Some students held an opinion that words like “context” do not need to be translated because it confuses people. The word is translated into Kazakh as “мәнмәтін”, whereas in Spanish it is “context”, in Italian “contest”, “context” in French, “контекст” in Russian, “kontekst” in Uzbek and “kontekstində” in Azaerbaijan. Others thought that people will get used to new words as they did in case of words like “сынып” [synyp] (class) and “пайыз” [payiz] (per cent) which were met skeptically when introduced in the 1990s.

Finally, some students mentioned that translations of some words were more like definitions rather than equivalents. For instance, “magnet school” was translated as “жеке пәндерді тереңдетіп оқытатын арнайы мектеп” (literally: the school which offers specialist tuition in a particular subject). The argument for such translation was that we need to think of the ordinary people who are not experts in the field as for them leaving “bullying” as “буллинг” does not make sense, whereas its definition does. However, others argued that people can look up the definition of the term when needed in a thesaurus or defining dictionary as we do with medical or other terminology.

What do you think?

Language Variation: Kazakh dialects

 

“Languages, like living species, evolve, grow, change, live, and die in relation to other languages and also in relation to their environment” (Hornberger, 2002, p. 33). So, with this word I want to emphasize that one language can be varying in different forms according to different places. The term language variety is also can be understood as a different interpretation of one language, which depends on social, regional or contextual patterns (Jaspers, 2010). Everybody has differences in the way of speaking, including pronunciation, grammar using structure, and vocabulary in one language in a particular place, and this variety of a language is called a dialect (American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 2000).  I am going to analyze a videoclip of Kazakh famous singer Serik Ibragimov with the song “Kazakhpyz barimiz” which can be translated as “All of us are Kazakhs”,  where he clearly illustrates different dialects in different parts of Kazakhstan. According to Coupland (2007),  dialect can be characterized as a perspective of different experience, not just a variation and its styles can be described as a social action, which illustrates a local identity.

Serik Ibragimov in his song illustrates the most common Kazakh dialects such as Northern Kazakh, Southern Kazakh, Eastern Kazakh and Western Kazakh dialects. One of the founders of Kazakh linguistics Sarsen Amanzholov claims that these different types of dialects are determined according to territorial basis, not by tribal structures (Kazakh encyclopedia, 2015). These different dialects are closely related to each another, although it has some regional peculiarities. So, let us take a look at the interpretation of the song’s lyrics and determine some of the dialects there.

At the beginning of the song he claims that there are different language varieties and customs in every region of Kazakhstan ranging from Altai mountains to Atyrau region, from Esyl and Zhaiyk rivers to the shores of the Caspian Sea.
Then, in the first part of the song he added Southern dialect to the song. There are some words which is similar with some Uzbek words, or their pronunciation. It can be impact of Uzbek boundary close to South region of Kazakhstan.

Standard Kazakh language	Southern dialect	English translation
Ol zhakta	Oyakta	There, in that place
Erkin	Beimaral	Feeling free, comfortable
Kai zhakta	Kayakta	In any place, wherever
Tate	Apshe	Aunt
Aga	Koke	Uncle
Oibai! (interjection)	Oliaa!	Woo!

Then, he continued his song in the second part with presenting the Western Kazakh dialect, the place of the powerful Younger clan (zhuz) of Kazakh tribe, which has a specific pronunciation and vocabulary pattern:

Standard Kazakh language	Western dialect	English translation
Ne khabar?	Ne khayar?	What news?
Goi	Goo	Well (meaning smth.)
Sau bolshy	Say bosh	Good bye
Nemene?	Ne zat?	What?
Tynda	Tyndashish	Listen

In the next part, the singer switched to the Eastern dialect with the specific pronunciation of consonant ‘ch’ instead of ‘sh’. This may be an influence of the Great Silk way road which went through South-Eastern part of Kazakhstan to China and nomadic style of nations and people of that time may had an impact on pronunciation which remain till our time (Kazakh Encyclopedia, 2015).

Standard Kazakh language	Eastern dialect	English translation
Shygys	Chygys	The East
Shalkyp zhatkan	Chalkyp	Wide
Zhatkan	Chatkan	Laid,  situate

 And the singer in his final part of the song mentioned the Northern dialect with the specific pronunciation of some vowels in soft way. The Northern region is described in the song as cold place with strong windy weather, however the singer enjoys the place of extreme weather and warm people.

Standard Kazakh language	Northern dialect	English translation
Kulakh	Kuliyakh	Ears
Tymakh	Tymiakh	Hat

At the end of the song the singer mentioned all the parts of Kazakhstan, and he strongly believed that Kazakh language with its beautiful various dialects should not be divided into national or regional subgroups. As we can see from this song, there are several language variations, especially dialectical variation (Nordquist, 2017) of four different regions. It can be observed that these dialects were different by grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation in each region. The Kazakh language is rich and wide, and it has lots of variations throughout Kazakhstan.  I have noticed that some of them are extremely different from Standard Kazakh language, others are slightly different. Despite that fact, dialects might be recognized by many Kazakh people. Nevertheless there is an every hope that Kazakh young generation and people from different parts of Kazakhstan might understand each other and accept these dialects with high tolerance and respect. The author and the singer of this song have an explicit objective of ensuring that every Kazakh people or citizen have an access to live in peace and harmony, no matter what ethnicity or culture you belonged to,  wherever you are from, and what dialect you use in ordinary life.

References

Coupland, N. (2007) Style. Language Variation and Identity. Cambridge: Cambridge

University Press.

Ibragimov,S. (2017).  Kazakhpyz barimiz\ All of us are Kazakhs. Video retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_wijc5hTZc

Jaspers, J. (2010). Style and styling. In Hornberger, N. H., & McKay, S. L. Sociolinguistics and language education (pp. 177-204). Bristol: Multilingual Matters. Retrieved from http://www.ebrary.com.

Nordquist, R. (2017). Linguistic Variation. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-linguistic-variation-1691242

The American Heritage dictionary of the English language. (2000). Boston :Houghton Mifflin.

The Kazakh encyclopedia, (2015).  Dialekty kazakhskogo yazyka\ Dialects of Kazakh language. Retrieved from: http://ru.encyclopedia.kz/index.php/dialekty_kazakhskogo_yazyka

Victor Rios: Help for kids the education system ignores

When I studied at school I had a classmate for whom I had a lot of respect because he had an exceptional talent for playing the dombyra. He also was good at all schools subjects and he was always rewarded for his good behavior. But after the death of his mother, he started to behave many times inappropriately and sometimes criminally. However, the school did not have anything to offer him against his regress. He dropped out of school. But Victor Rios knows how to help children like my classmate who was failed by the education system.

Victor Rios, an educator and the author of the project “Restorative justice”, claims that students who experience poverty, stigma, and social exclusion need to be seen as the assets to the education system. In his speech, he explicates how he, being on welfare and incarcerated in prison three times for three felonies in his 15, could graduate the school successfully. His hero is his teacher Ms. Russ, an educator who managed to tap into his soul and believed in him so much that she tricked him into believing in himself. The speaker offers three strategies to succeed in working with such children.

First – these students are empty containers for us to fill with knowledge.
Getting rid of deficit perspective in education like these people come from a culture of violence, a culture of poverty, these people are at-risk, and these people are truant. Instead, he says, we need to offer solutions for their problems. In order to make his argument effective, the speaker highlights how his teacher Ms. Russ treated him, respected his family, his friends, his community no matter what and turned him from a criminal into a high-achiever. The evidence is pertinent and powerful, especially with the presence of photos before meeting Ms. Russ and after.

Second – value stories that young people bring to the schoolhouse.
Victor Rios says that their stories of overcoming insurmountable odds have already established their character. And he claims that this character is a precursor for the academic achievements. To prove, the speaker gives two stories about hard-work ethic that his community taught to encounter poverty and his student William`s deed to help his classmate that was also learned from his community too. Giving such reliable pieces of evidence from real-life situations of the speaker and his students make his claims strong. The examples provided are impressive that makes the audience believe that welcoming stories of every community is an effective strategy to raise students` academic performance.

Third – provide with adequate resources.
He talks humorously about resources. The strongest point of this argument for me was about the power of believing in students. He takes himself as an example. However, what other things does he mean by saying resources? The point would be much more impressive if he had illustrated more and precisely.

However, the minute detail that is not clear is that Victor Rios talks about educators as the only and primary cause for student dropout. In other words, after his speech, I was left with the opinion that teachers only can help students who experience poverty, stigma, and social exclusion. Maybe his initial aim was to accentuate the role of a teacher to empower students in order to make the successful academically, however, he looks at the issue only from one perspective: from his own perspective as an educator. Perspectives of parents, peers and other stakeholders are worthy to mention too.

In general, I find this talk as the most persuasive and impressive because he presents arguments and ideas not without being underpinned by shreds of evidence. And his pieces of evidence are powerful and reliable because he gives examples from his own experience; he gives examples from what he has encountered. Additionally, the talk is rich with catchy phrases like “when you teach to the heart, the mind will follow”

Code-switching as a strategy for a social cohesion in Kazakhstan (data interpretation)

Kazakhstani society has been featured by the dominance of linguistic purism at least on an official level (Fierman, 2006). Monoglossic ideology also retained during independence with Kazakh language promoting policy and such linguistic practices as code-switching, that is, the use of both languages in the same sentence was academically and politically despised (Muysken, 1995). Although, as it was mentioned above, code-switching was an unfavorable phenomenon especially on official levels, it turned to be widely practiced among both russified and Kazakh-speaking population. Code-switching along with code-mixing became an indispensable part of linguistic practices of bilinguals, that was considered as a “colloquial language use” (Muhamedowa, 2009). The practice of mixing languages in some cases became a means of claiming identity or the demonstration of belonging to a certain community, for example, international school students’ use of code-switching in their daily conversation (Akynova, Zharkynbekova, Agmanova, Aimoldina, & Dalbergenova, 2014). The following data interpretation is based on about two-minute long video clip called “Мен казакпын” (“I’m Kazakh”)  made by Ivanov, a Kazakhstani blogger of Russian origin, who uses code-switching attributed to his Kazakh affinity. The author is known for creating his comic videos about social life in Kazakhstan, which sometimes reflect main issues in a society and satires on such detrimental phenomena as corruption, high-rolling habits, the low responsibility of government bodies.

YouTube blogger Fim Ivanov published his video clip of a song “Men kazakpyn” right before the celebration of Peoples of Kazakhstan Unity Day, which he remarked at the description box. Meaning of the word “peoples” here attributes to “nations”, which symbolically reminds us that the 1st of May is the day of celebration of other nationalities of Kazakhstan, indicates this video as his tribute to the solidarity and peace among other ethnicities of Kazakhstan.

Use of intersentential code-switching in the first line of the song “Я казах”, “Meн казакпын” (“I’m Kazakh”, first sentence in Russian, second in Kazakh); “Весит кредит”, “Мен Туркияга кеттим” (I have a credit (Russian), I’m going to Turkey (Kazakh) and intrasentential in such utterances as “Казахша сойле, а то,” (“Speak Kazakh (KZ), otherwise” (RUS), “Дома сижу, мен шай ишемин” (“Sitting at home (RUS), having a tea (KZ)”, etc. illustrate that author wanted to become appropriate to Kazakhs’ lifestyle and demonstrated it through adding Kazakh phrases or words to his Russian text, or changing his name “Fima” to more Kazakh styled “Fimeke”. But then, the presence of grammatical mistakes in phrases and a lack of Kazakh typical letters, that were substituted with Russian alternative letters in words like “ишемин” (“drinking”) instead of Kazakh letter “і”, or “казахпынгой” instead of “қазақпын ғой”, where several letters have been kept in Russian, and grammatically were incorrect: two separate words were connected. At the first sight, those mistakes and Ivanov’s poor Kazakh pronunciation may seem to be the result of low language competence of the blogger, but his description near the title reveals another point:

“For those who do not understand why there are errors in the text. This is done deliberately, as many Kazakhs do not know their language. And when those people start talking it, they are immediately humiliated. When you speak abroad, in bad English, you will simply be corrected or kept quiet. Do not necessarily discourage people from speaking the Kazakh language, everyone will learn it in the future. Peace for everyone!”

This message explicitly conveys the author’s attitude towards the state language, his belief that it will be acquired by majorities. He draws public’s attention to Kazakh-speaking part of the population, so-called “nagyz” (“true”) Kazakhs opposed to those who do not or hardly ever speaks Kazakh – “shala” (“half”) Kazakhs. The first one tends to react aggressively to the latter who are not fluent in Kazakh, even in those cases when “shala-Kazakhs” are learning it, but struggle with speaking. Hence, the author calls “nagyz” Kazakhs for understanding and compassion to Kazakh learners, not endless shameful blaming. Moreover, author through the use code-switching implicitly shows how language can be learned with the help of the first language and “one nation-one language ideology” not always works effectively (Woolard, & Schieffelin, 1994).

Another distinctive feature of a song is its ambiguity, presence crossing or possible absence of it. Crossing is a form of code-switching that is executed by a performer who tries through that to become closer to the imitated language or language community (Rampton, 1998). However, Ivanov tries to imitate Kazakhs through depicting their lifestyle in a stigmatized manner: he collects and names well-known sometimes infamous facts from everyday lives of Kazakhs, such as endless tea parties with excessive consumption of it, a habit of coming late to weddings, a necessity of having friendship with influential individual and impractical high-rolling of money even at the expense of low family budget. The audience in the comments section has been divided into two different groups: those who support the author and claim his crossing in lyrics have positivity, and others, who asserted Ivanov was mocking at Kazakhs and was focused only on flaws based on stereotypes. Personally, I could not find any offense in the video content and in the song, except the use of features of stereotypes about Kazakh culture, which I am sure were used for humoristic effect.

To conclude, the author demonstrates how through code-switching a universal language may be shaped for both nagyz-Kazakhs and shala-Kazakhs, bilinguals and thus, viable in conversation. Following his claim on keeping tolerance, understanding and positive attitude towards those who learn the Kazakh language for more than longtime Kazakhstani society will witness gradual full acquisition of a state language and will not kill Russophones’ desire to learn it.

His video encourages interethnic solidarity and harmony in Kazakhstani society who barely speak state language, but could use code-switching for communication. Also, it develops patriotism among Kazakhstanis, when they see a young non-Kazakh man performing in a popular among young people trap style and claiming his Kazakh national identity through his own language.

References:
Akynova, D., Zharkynbekova, S., Agmanova, A., Aimoldina, A., & Dalbergenova, L. (2014). Language choice among the youth of Kazakhstan: English as a self-representation of prestige. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 143, 228-232.

Fierman, W. (2006). Language and education in post-Soviet Kazakhstan: Kazakh-medium instruction in urban schools. Russian Review, 65(1), 98–116. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9434.2005.00388.x

Matuszkiewicz, R. (2010). The language issue in Kazakhstan-institutionalizing new ethnic relations after Independence. Economic and Environmental Studies, 10(2), 211-227. Retrieved from http://www.ees.uni.opole.pl/content/02_10/ees_10_2_fulltext_03.pdf

Muhamedowa, R. (2009). The use of Russian conjunctions in the speech of bilingual Kazakhs. International Journal of Bilingualism, 13(3), 331-356.

Muysken, P. (1995). Code-switching and grammatical theory. In L. Milroy, & P. Muysken. One speaker, two languages: cross-disciplinary perspectives on code-switching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Rampton, B. (1998). Language crossing and the redefinition of reality. Code-switching in conversation: Language, interaction and identity, 290-317.

Woolard, K. A., & Schieffelin, B. B. (1994). Language Ideology. Annual Review of Anthropology, 23(1), 55–82. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.an.23.100194.000415

 

#smile

HANAWON: RE-EDUCATION OF NORTH KOREANS

photo credit: https://www.nknews.org/2015/07/what-hanawon-doesnt-teach-north-korean-defectors

Images of North Korea circulating on the web give a glimpse of the hardships commoners face there; a few succeed to flee to the developed South seeking a better life. Curious to know how escapees adapt to new life in South Korea I came across a youtube video, where the two interviewed mention Hanawon (하나원 means House of Unity in Korean). Reading some articles, I was ambivalent about this settlement support centre, which by 2009 had trained nearly 90% of the 16,000 defectors in South Korea (Glionna, 2009). This blog post thus is dedicated to what I have unearthed wondering how Hanawon copes with “easing the socioeconomic and psychological anxiety of North Korean defectors; overcoming the barriers of cultural heterogeneity; and offering practical training for earning a livelihood in the South” (Demick, 2010, p. 249). 

Judging from defectors’ feedback online, the three-month training at Hanawon tries to help them deal with socioeconomic and psychological anxiety. The new citizens receive special treatment including cheap accommodation, settlement funds of ₩20 million ($18670) and ₩320,000 ($300) as a monthly allowance for five years (Song, 2004). Such support serves as an airbag to escapees when adjusting to a new society. Financial aid is all the more necessary given that in 2008 75% of almost 600 residents at the centre suffered from depression or other mental problems, which is likely to take a toll on their earning capacity (Glionna, 2009). While the struggling certainly receive counselling to relieve psychological anxiety, the centre’s exterior appears disturbing. The school buildings in a secluded area patrolled by dozens of guards remind me of a prison than a good educational institution. On top of that, intelligence agents grill residents in an attempt to weed out spies (Glionna, 2009). I can imagine all the stress they go through. Are the new South Koreans able to start a new life with the way Hanawon reeducates them?

photo credit: http://newssh.tistory.com/692

The answer lies in the measures taken to help defectors adapt to the very different culture of South Korea. Within the three-month crash course residents also develop basic skills to survive in the capitalist society: they learn to use buses, ATMs and computers and they learn the standard (Seoul) Korean language (Glionna, 2009). The knowledge absorbed at Hanawon is crucial to get by considering the contrast in modernity between the North and the South. Yet it does not suffice to make the new South Koreans feel welcome and equal. Many of them have complained how harsh of a world to live in the society turned out to be. The locals are extremely individualistic. It is a characteristic so foreign to the Northern counterparts, those indoctrinated with socialistic values. It further widens the gap and adds to the discrimination the defectors face. They already get labelled as traitors and spies (Onishi, 2006). Of course, many would say it is not the duty of Hanawon to spoon-feed the newcomers, but I think the latter at least deserve to get a taste of reality before entering the society (Kang, 2015). They deserve not only to hear about a few success stories of North Koreans, but also to know of the walls the majority of North Koreans face.

Having success in the capitalist society is important. But far more important is not being a failure. I hope that Hanawon provides more realistic and practical education and training for newly arrived North Koreans.

Kang, 2015

One of those walls is the matter of employment. Few companies hire North Koreans (Onishi, 2006). Many defectors despite being just as skilled as the locals resort to part-time jobs and low-tier professions. How is Hanawon supposed to tackle it?! Well, I think they should be honest with the residents and tell them what is to be anticipated. More practical skills related to job-hunting would be appreciated. At this moment, you might realize the scale of the problem is appalling; the society as a whole mainly rejects the defectors and it is high time for it to change or to at least be more tolerant. Still, Hanawon is partly to blame since it lets the “students” set unrealistic expectations. The students think of South Korea as of a paradise after the hell they fleed from. 

In short, I inadvertently think of how similar Hanawon is to the schools we attend. We are often taught only about the successful cases, not failures. Being honest would help a lot. Hopefully, Hanawon is taking notes and developing its format of procedures to better re-educate the new South Koreans. North Koreans deserve all the best as they start a new chapter in their lives. 

WHAT DO YOU THINK HANAWON COULD DO TO IMPROVE?

 

How to defend yourself against misleading statistics in the news | Sanne Blauw | deconstraction

Number is an incredible tool that makes us decide, judge and act according to the given evidence with no assumptions. However, not all these statistical numbers are reliable and this is our personal matter believe them or not. Sanne Blauw is a journalist who has a PhD degree in econometrics and is extremely passionate about numbers. Moreover, she had a working experience at the OECD and the University Council. Her talk was dedicated to reveal the misled statistics which everybody encounters with. She provided 5 types of misinforming statistics:
Firstly, the good looking graph
Not all good looking graphs might be presented right. As an example, Sanne introduced the graph of the Planned Parenthood which is non-profit organization providing reproductive health services. This graph was reported by the republican of Congressman as showing negative indicators. However, the presented data was not right as this graph was based by two different scales. Putting these patterns at the same scale would change the situation completely. The rate of cancer-screening and preventive services was decreasing but the abortion rate had hardly removed.

Retrieved from https://www.datapine.com
Second, the polluted poll
The headline from the New York Times was presented: “1 in 4 women experience Sex Assault on Campus”. It means almost 25 % of female students face with the cases of sexual assaults. However, the problem with this was that only 20 % of women were involved and the term of sexual assault was not clarified. Consequently, there were non-representative sample of women who interpreted the sexual assault in their own way. That is why it is also a kind of statistical lie. It is always important to see how the data was collected.
Third, the overconfident decimal point
GDP is a great indicator to show the countries` economic stability. According to the reporter this number usually varied as it is so complicated and time-consuming to calculate. Additionally, a huge range of components make GDP considerably difficult to measure. As a result, we cannot fully rely on this total value of country`s economic prosperity.
Forth, the non-spectacular statistics
Before taking some numbers for granted, it is essential to pay attention for details. Therefore, additional context or details might turn more considerable numbers into less ones. The case of bowel cancer risk is considered there. Headline in the Dutch News reported that: “People who eat processed meat daily have a 20 times higher risk of getting bowel cancer”. Sanne emphasized that according to the data there is only 4,4 % chance of getting bowel cancer in the USA. If you eat daily about one hot-dog still this number will increase slightly to 5,2%. However, the chance of NOT getting cancer is significantly greater. So, putting numbers in a context is essential as well.
Fifth, The cocky correlation
Some the same things happen at the same that is why researches assume they are connected with each other somehow. The reported introduced the graph of the increased number of brain tumors from 80s to 90s. The researchers assumed that this increase is due to the invention of artificial sugar at this period. But the reason lied simply on the invention of MRI scanners which contributed to the revealing of more numbers of brain tumors. The speaker described this case as the most dangerous distorted statistic.
Overall, the author raised great ideas and observations worth to spread. During the presentation she was confident and organized. From the very beginning she used a couple of techniques to involve the audience as asking questions, saying jokes and famous statements, as well as proving her personal background information. While making reports people sometimes did not examine the data correctly. From the presented topic we as students can learn to be very careful with numbers despite the original sources and providers. However, some points of her presentation are taken from other internet resources that is why we cannot assume that they are her own ideas. Her speech is seemed dedicated mainly to raise people`s awareness of misinform statistics around us.

Discrimination of Kazakh language in Kazakhstani television

According to a program “Rukhani zhangyru”(MoES, 2017), state language is a main key of national consciousness in other words it is very important to increase the status of Kazakh language in context of globalization and avoid losing language, identity, culture and patriotism. TV’s role in increasing the status of Kazakh language in Kazakhstan is vital, because among other media it is “more prestigious, influential and strong one”. However, there is lack of Kazakh TV programs on our state channels because of dependence on Russian television. Here, I am going to discuss about the issue of hindrance of Kazakh language in television world through articles in mass media, which touch the question.

Ұлттық идея. Ұлттық мақсат-мүдде. Бәрін орындайтын тіл… Тіл – тарихи дәстүрлерді болашаққа жеткізуші тетік. … Бүгінгі ТД БАҚ-тың ең беделдісі, әрі өтімдісі, ең өткір ақпарат құралы, әрі солай болып қала береді. ТД өнері жалпыұлттық, мемлекеттік мәселені шешетін – өте құдретті қару. Алайда отандық арналарда тіл тазалығы ақсап тұр, басты себеп, қазақ ТД орыс тіліне тәуелді.

National idea. National purpose and interest. All of these are implemented by language… Language is a mean, which brings historical traditions to the future… Today’s TV is the most prestigious, influential and strong mean of information and it will continue. TV’s art is a mighty weapon, which can solve all-Kazakhstani and state problems. However, language purity is crippling in state channels, main cause is that Kazakhstani TV depends on Russian language.

(The State language development institute, 26 April 2017; a quote from Uldai Ibaidullyeva, a journalist; Kazakh – italics, English Plain)

Ibaidullayeva shows two sides of the TV’s impact on language use. On the one hand, it might cause language loss, because it influences strongly the usage among citizens today, which leads to the loss in the future. On the other hand, it can be a key to resolve problems on the whole Kazakhstan territory. She also mentions that Kazakh language is discriminated because of reliance on Russian language. Here we should notice that growth of Kazakh status in all spheres is an important issue and her focus on media, especially TV should be taken into account. Another author – Myrzan Kenzhebai – agrees with the power of TV:

Необходимо казахизировать отечественные телеканалы. Потому что телевидение – самое сильное и опасное оружие ХХІ века.

There is a need to kazakhisate national channels, because television is the most powerful and dangerous weapon of XXI century.

(NewsTimes, 8 September 2017; a quote from Myrzan Kenzhebai, poet, cultural figure of RK; Russian – italics, English – plain)

Another author highlights real statistics, which show the same trend as above:

С повышением процентного соотношения казахский семей, повышение рейтингов казахскоязычных программ, казалось бы, должно стать закономерным явлением. Но, согласно итогам исследований за январь и февраль 2012г. частота смотрения телеканалов на казахском языке сократилось еще больше!?

Along with an increase of percental proportion of Kazakh families, it seems that a growth of ratings of Kazakhs-speaking programs must be natural phenomenon. However, according to results of the investigation in January and February in 2012, frequency of watching television channels in Kazakh language deteriorated more than bedore!?

(Internews Kazakhstan, 27 March 2012; a quote from Karlyga Ibragimova, a journalist; Russian –italics, English – plain)

It is a general picture of Kazakh-speaking channels in 2012 from the view of Ibragimova, who bases on Gullup Media survey’s results. Despite number of Kazakh has risen, proportion of watching TV channels in Kazakh language decreased. It is not an understandable fact, because situation must be opposite. Author cannot propose a cause of the consequence. She just show the statistics and point out that Kazakhstani programs are not as popular as Russian ones:

Показатели программ на казахском языке намного отстают от показателей программ на русском языке. Это можно понять, сравнив не то чтобы месячные или недельные, а однодневные процентные показатели новостей. Например, по итогам однодневного исследования Gallup Media рейтинг новостей Национального телеканала «Қазақстан» — 1,8%. Даже те же новости КТК, но на казахском языке — 3,9%. Выпуск «Информбюро» на казахском языке 31-канала — 7,8%; А выпуск новостей на «1-канал Евразия» в передаче «Время» собрал самое большое количество зрителей — 23,7%… У утренней программы «Таңшолпан» рейтинг всего лишь — 2,9%. А «Доброе утро» на «1-канала Евразия» дает все 22,3%.

Indexes of programs in Kazakh language lag behind indicators of programs in Russian. It can be understood when we compare not monthly or weekly indexes, it is clearly seen from daily indicators of news. For example, according to daily investigation of news on National channel by Gallup Media Ratings, results are following: “Kazakhstan” – 1,8%; news in Kazakh on “KTK” – 3,9%; news release of “Informburo” in Kazakh of “31^st channel” – 7,8%; but news release of “Vremya” on “1^st channel Eurasia” attracts the largest quantity of viewers – 23,7%… Rating of morning program “Tansholpan” only – 2,9%; but “Dobroe utro” on “1^st channel Eurasia” – 22,3%.

(Internews Kazakhstan, 27 March 2012; a quote from Karlyga Ibragimova, a journalist; Russian –italics, English – plain)

Author would like to emphasize that Russian news, culture and TV shows are more interesting and attracting rather than Kazakh ones. According to above-mentioned statistics, approximately quarter of citizens in Kazakhstan watch “Vremya”, in other words Russian events, which broadcast in Russian, has top position in Kazakhstan. The most interesting Kazakh news in Kazakh language covers only 7.8% of Kazakhstani citizens. Author demonstrates her disappointment about unpopularity of Kazakh programs in comparison with Russian in Kazakhstan territory.

I would like to mention that none of the authors of the articles found out causes of such kind of trend, but they proposed some solutions of the problem. For example:

… Вместо этого нужно показывать новости и передачи, в которых обсуждались бы проблемы казахской государственности, земельных отношений и другие серьезные темы, заставляющие задуматься казахскую молодежь.

Instead of this, we should show news and programs ,which discuss issues of Kazakh government, land relationship and other serious topics, which make Kazakh youth think.

(NewsTimes, 8 September 2017; a quote from Myrzan Kenzhebai, poet, cultural figure of RK; Russian – italics, English – plain)

 

… Көрерменге үлгі боларлық кейіпкері бар хабарлар көргісі келеді…

… Spectators would like to watch programs about characters, who can be paradigm…

(The State language development institute, 26 April 2017; a quote from Uldai Ibaidullyeva, a journalist; Kazakh – italics, English Plain)

Extracts above shows that there is a shortage of appropriate programs in Kazakh language, which can attract Kazakhstani youth. It does not mean that TV organizations ought to design funny and exciting programs. It explains that it is important to create programs, which raise modern important questions among Kazakhstani citizens. In my opinion, it is not right, because we should recognize the reason of the “disease”, before offering of the “treatment”. Otherwise, treatment is likely not to work.

To sum up, I would like to emphasize that the above-mentioned extracts demonstrate results of collision of two ideological discourses (Hult & Pietikäinen, 2014). First, it is consequence of previous “Soviet ideological” discourse. It has affected the Kazakhstani citizens’ language choice, because most people are interested in opting Russian language in any form (speaking, listening, watching etc.). Second is “Kazakhisation ideological discourse”, which is current strategy of the country. Despite our government is implementing many programs and initiatives in order to rise Kazakh status in globalized Kazakhstani context. These two ideologies influences each other, however, if the government focus on reasons of such kind of problems, we can develop the situation and Kazakhisation ideological discourse can be alive in pluralist discourse (De Jong , 2011, p. 249), which can be result of trilingual education.

 

Reference:

De Jong, E. (2011). Foundations of Multilingualism in Education: From Principles to Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon Publishing.

Ibaidullyeva, U. Teledidar tili nege shorkak? [Why is there a lack of Kazakh]. (2017, April). Retrieved from

https://mtdi.kz/new/audarma/id/105/q/1

Ibragimova, K. Kogda my perestanem prikryvatsya reitingami i nacnem zashishat interesy kazakhskih zritelei? [When do we stop to hide behind ratings and start to protact interest of Kazakh spectators?]. (2012, March). Retrieved from

http://www.internews.kz/newsitem/27-03-2012/18059

Kenzhebai, M. Sem obyazatelnyh shagov kazakhisazii ot deyatelya kultury RK [Seven mandatory steps of kazakhisation from cultural figure of RK]. (2017, September). Retrieved from

https://newtimes.kz/obshchestvo/item/58583-sem-obyazatelnykh-shagov-kazakhizatsii-ot-deyatelya-kultury-rk