Developing an educational model for language programs in secondary and higher education in Kazakhstan

Abstract

This article presents an educational model developed by the authors for working with somatic phraseological units in secondary and higher education language programs in Kazakhstan. The model is designed to address several methodological challenges. Phraseological units are traditionally included in school and university language curricula, but most often appear as isolated topics or lists of expressions intended for memorization, without systematic integration into the goals of developing linguistic and intercultural competence. Under this approach, phraseology becomes a supplementary component, although it is fixed expressions that ensure the naturalness, expressiveness, and cultural specifics of speech and can serve as a deliberately designed educational resource. The study is conducted within the framework of design-based research and is based on an analysis of scientific literature, curricula, diagnostic tasks, students’ written and oral work, as well as classroom and seminar observations. At the center of the study is a three-level model of the somatic phraseological cycle (bodily-cognitive, intercultural, and educational-project levels), which integrates work with somatic phraseological units into the vertical continuum “middle school – high school – undergraduate programs” and embeds it in actual curricula. The model aims to address several interrelated problems: the episodic and unsystematic treatment of phraseological units, the gap between school and university levels, and the weak integration of phraseological and intercultural communicative competences