History and General Information

History of the Department of “Preschool and Primary Education”

With the direct support of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, N. Nazarbayev, the university was established by the decree on the opening of Turkistan State University named after Khoja Akhmet Yassawi (Almaty, June 6, 1991, No. 329).

In the 1999–2000 academic year, based on the Department of History of Philosophy, Pedagogy, and Psychology, the specialty 5B010200 — Pedagogy and Methods of Primary Education was opened, and the first students were admitted. The department was headed by Professor A. Abuov, Doctor of Philosophy.

In the 2002–2003 academic year, the Pedagogy Department was established as a separate entity from the Department of History of Philosophy, Pedagogy, and Psychology to serve pedagogical specialties. The specialty 5B010200 — Pedagogy and Methods of Primary Education became part of this new department, which was headed by Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Senior Lecturer K. Ibraimzhanov.

In the 2003 academic year, the Faculty of Pedagogy was established, and Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Senior Lecturer K. Ibraimzhanov was appointed as dean. The faculty included the following departments: Department of Pedagogy of Primary Education, headed by Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor B. Kulakhmet; Department of Methods of Primary Education, headed by Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Professor E. Omar; Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology, headed by Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Senior Lecturer Zh. Beisenbekov.

By the decision of the №1 Senate session of Khoja Akhmet Yassawi International Kazakh-Turkish University on October 28, 2004, the Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology was divided into two separate departments: Department of General Psychology and Department of General Pedagogy and Ethnopedagogy. Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor B. Ortaev was appointed head of the Department of General Pedagogy and Ethnopedagogy, and Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Professor E. Omar was appointed head of the Department of Pedagogy and Methods of Primary Education.

The Department of Pedagogy and Methods of Primary Education was headed by Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Professor E. Omar from the 2003–2007 academic years; Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor S. Kozhageldieva from 2007–2010; Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor B. Ortaev from 2010–2012; and Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Acting Associate Professor G. Tokkulova from 2012–2014.

From the 2006–2007 academic year until 2009, the Department of General Pedagogy and Ethnopedagogy was headed by the prominent national pedagogue and scholar, Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Professor L.K. Kerimov. During that time, the specialty 5B010100 — Preschool Education was opened based on this department, and the first students were admitted.

From the 2009–2010 academic year, the head of the department was Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Acting Associate Professor G. Kaibuldaeva.

In the 2011–2012 academic year, Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Acting Associate Professor A. Rysbekova was appointed head of the Department of General Pedagogy and Ethnopedagogy.

Starting from the 2014–2015 academic year, due to changes within the university, the Faculty of History and Pedagogy was reorganized into the Faculty of Humanities. The programs previously under the Department of General Pedagogy and Ethnopedagogy of the former Faculty of History and Pedagogy — namely, 6B01202 – Preschool Education, 7M01202 – Pedagogy of Preschool Education and Training, 6B01303 – Pedagogy and Methods of Primary Education, and 7M01303 – Pedagogy and Methods of Primary Education — were merged into a single department. This department was restructured under the Faculty of Humanities as the Department of Educational Technologies.

During the period from 2014 to 2023, the Department of Educational Technologies was headed by Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Professor B. Ortaev, PhD, Associate Professor A.A. Kuralbayeva, Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Acting Associate Professor A. Rysbekova, PhD, Acting Associate Professor B. Auezov, and Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor A.A. Zhumadullayeva.

Currently, starting from the 2024–2025 academic year, the head of the department is Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Acting Associate Professor A. Rysbekova.

The department carries out scientific research according to approved topics within the educational programs it provides. Agreements have been made with educational institutions to ensure students complete professional internships. For the 6B01202 – Preschool Education program, dual training is implemented in cooperation with “Aliya” Kindergarten, “Baldyrgan” Kindergarten, and for the 6B01303 – Pedagogy and Methods of Primary Education program, with IT Lyceum No. 23 and M. Abenova Secondary School.

Starting from the 2024–2025 academic year, within the framework of the “Strengthening the Potential of Pedagogical Education” project, students have been admitted to and are being trained in the programs 6B01222 – Preschool Education (IP) and 6B01323 – Primary Education (IP).

For the 2025–2026 academic year, work has been organized according to individual subject blocks of the curriculum for these educational programs, with employment agreements concluded. The department currently includes 4 Candidates of Sciences, 5 PhD holders, and experienced teaching staff.