Haileybury Astana
From Kazakhstan Encyclopedia
Template:Unreferenced Template:Infobox UK school
Haileybury Astana is an independent school in Astana, Kazakhstan. It was founded in 2011 as offshoot from Haileybury, an independent school in England.
Contents
History and development
Haileybury, one of Britain’s oldest independent boarding schools, has a long heritage of involvement in Asia due to its association with the East India Company. Through connections with the largest number of Kazakh nationals in any UK independent school, Haileybury UK founded a school in Almaty, Kazakhstan in 2008. Following the foundation of Haileybury Almaty, a similar school under the auspices of Haileybury was developed in Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan. The project commenced in 2009, and ground was broken on the construction phase in July 2010. The design of the school is a modernist take on Haileybury in the UK, with a small central tree-lined quad and amphitheatre, surrounded by classroom blocks, and indoor play areas.
Aims and aspirations
Haileybury Astana was opened on 31 August 2011 by Kazakhstan's first President, Nursultan Nazarbayev. Under the leadership of founding Headmaster Andrew Auster, the school provided education for boys and girls from the ages of two to eleven when it first opened its doors. Now, under the leadership of Headmaster Colin Callaghan, there are currently 420 pupils aged 2–15 years The school will include year 10 pupils in 2015-2016 and will be a fully fledged 2-18 school by 2018.
In addition to the expected range of subjects taught in most UK independent schools, Haileybury Astana also offers Kazakh language lessons from Key Stage 1 onwards. Russian, French and Spanish languages are also taught. Apart from languages, all teaching is conducted in English, with support from tri-lingual teaching assistants. All pupils are expected and encouraged to speak English during the school day.
The school follows the standards of the UK National Curriculum for each level of education, with subjects taught by qualified teachers from the UK. Pupils will be prepared to sit the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) examinations at the age of sixteen, and the school hopes to offer the International Baccalaureate(IB) Diploma to Sixth Form pupils, pending accreditation by the IBO.
The school aims at a standard comparable with independent schools in developing countries, average skills in English, and to prepare its pupils to access the best of university education in Kazakhstan.
House system
The school has four houses, each named after famous alumni of Haileybury in the UK.
- Attlee (yellow)
- Bartle Frere (red)
- Edmonstone (blue)
- Kipling (green)
With the exception of Attlee House, each house has a counterpart in the historic house system of Haileybury in the UK. Each house has its own colour.
School events
The school has engaged in a series of concerts by professional musicians, from the Kazakh National Quintet to a local Jazz assemble. School staff founded the Astana Community Choir in 2001, and the Hailrybury International Community Choir in September 2013. Haileybury Astana has an active sports programme, competing with schools both within Kazakhstan and at International level overseas. The school is a member of COBIS.
Pupils may participate in residential trips to the UK, and other countries such as Nepal, Turkey, Hong Kong and Greece. Internally, the school holds academic days focusing on Maths, science, STEM, World Book Day, Kazakh festivals and World festivals.
The school's notable guests have included President Nursultan Nazarbayev, B.T. Zhumagulov (Kazakhstan's Minister of Education), top tennis stars Rafael Nadal and Martina Hingis, Olympic medalist Serik Sapiyev, Murat the Clown, former child star and holder of the record of youngest professional clown in the world.
Haileybury Day is held annually. During the day, pupils and their families may participate in many events and there are stalls selling a range of goods. All profits from this event are sent to charities nominated by the pupils.
Future developments
The school will continue to grow until it is a full 2-18 school by September 2018. Haileybury Astana is a candidate school to introduce the IB Diploma in September 2017. The school has plans to further develop the site. Possible future developments include a Kindergarten, sports' hall and IB centre.
