To a lot of people, Kazakhstan is still a mystery. After I published my first article, a lot of readers messaged me to know about the situation of children in Kazakhstan. On World Children’s Day, with the release of the Situation Analysis from UNICEF Kazakhstan, I am sharing my two cents in this article to cherish the tremendous achievements and indicate the remaining challenges ahead for every child in Kazakhstan Children and adolescents in Kazakhstan constitute 31.4% of the total population, which means 1 out of 3 citizens is a child. The vast proportion of children in Kazakhstan requires...

If I hadn’t taken a gap year, I would have had the same life as every university student does in Hong Kong now (studying, tutoring and hanging out with friends). Simply, I ditched everything that I had in Hong Kong, and I started a new beginning in Kazakhstan as a United Nations Volunteer for UNICEF. Before I made this move, all of my friends were criticizing me about my decision. They were saying, ‘Why don’t you go to the volunteer programme after your graduation?’ ‘You are going to miss a lot because you are not getting immersed with us.’ Honestly, I also struggled a lot before I came here...

If you close your eyes and I ask you to "think about 21st century", what comes to mind? Improvement of the health system? Progress? Prosperity of the economy? What is really going on in the world? Global warming and climate change are destroying animals and the environment, the situation in Yemen is still there, children are dying. Development or collapse of humanity? People continue to explore other planets, in search of a new Home. Why? What is the point of moving to another place if we simply cannot keep our Present Home. People have come a long way, from wars to modernising technology to...

Six months, half a year or one hundred eighty-two days – this may seem like a short period of time but for me it is a mini-life journey, filled with challenges and new insights. I have been with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Kazakhstan as an international UN volunteer working on communications. As such, I have contributed to improving the visibility of the organization and the important work it is doing for every child. My contribution has varied: from writing and editing to pitching a partnership proposal and contributing to the launch of a new programme on volunteering. As I...

In recent years, there has been talk about the need to transform school education. Among the ideas is the transition to mastery learning, a system of learning every topic one hundred percent. Mastery learning is a way of learning in which the pupil moves forward at his or her own pace. In this approach, each topic is taught at 100% and only after the unit is completed does the student move on to the next one. The speed depends on initial knowledge, personal disposition, and desire. According to the mastery-learning concept, the ability of students should not be measured by the material they...

Today I was attending a webinar that relates to the theme: Steam4all: Accelerating gender equalities. So, did you know that there is only 28% of women STEM workforce representation around the world. Plus, Future-of-jobs will be technology and sciences, therefore women need to be well equipped with STEM skills to enter the workforce. I have heard lots of stories of women fighting with stereotypes. Like if you are entering to study mathematics or physics where there is a so-called “boy’s club” you have to prove you are smart enough and show your abilities to compete with others. I have learned...

It amazes me how talented people are. I watched a video today of a girl who painted a picture with paint and sea waves. Yes, that's right, sea waves. She simply applied paint to a piece of paper and then gently dipped it in the sea. With the help of the waves, the colors spread out on the sheet of paper, creating a background for the drawing. Then the artist began to paint the picture. I wish I could show you, but it turned out beautiful, unusual and very original. In fact, all brilliant is simple. I don't have this talent, but I can also do what I'm good at, which is writing. It gives me...

Hello everyone! My name is Assylan. I live in the city of Karaganda is the mining capital of Kazakhstan. Population - 500,000 people. My volunteering experience has arrived at 15 years. I was elected to a youth organization and represented the interests of young people in the government. I helped people with disabilities, orphanages and nursing homes. A more serious volunteering began during a pandemic together with the UNICEF branch in Kazakhstan and the "National Volunteer Network" organization. I passed distance learning and became a volunteer of a project "BeKind" for the prevention of...

I am a very curious active young man since childhood. I was always interested in politics, discussions and solving global problems. As a child, I dreamed of becoming a diplomat and represent the Republic of Kazakhstan at the international level. The United Nations model (UN model) is the synthesis of a scientific conference and role-playing game, during which students and students of high schools in several official UN languages reproduce the work of the bodies of this organization, acquire diplomatic, leadership, spectacular and language skills and the ability to come to a compromise The...

I was born on July 18, 2001. My first computer appeared at me 9-10 years and I have been fond of games from childhood. The first game, which imposed a strong imprint on my education - "Titan Quest". This is a game in the genre of Action / RPG. This game introduced me to mythology of different peoples: ancient Greece, ancient Egypt, Babylon, Scandinavian myths and not only. When you play this game, you get acquainted with the features of the architecture of different nations, get acquainted with their culture, trade and history. You can meet the king of Leonid, visit the Great Babylon, the...