🎙️ Keynote Speakers

Professor Juldyz SMAGULOVA

(KIMEP University, Almaty, Kazakhstan)

Juldyz Smagulova is Professor and Founding Dean of College of Human Sciences and Education at KIMEP University, Kazakhstan. She holds a Candidate of Philological Sciences degree from al-Farabi Kazakh National University and a PhD in Sociolinguistics from King’s College London. Her research can be classified under three major interrelated strands: language ideology; language and education policy; and language pedagogy. These strands are held together by a common scholarly interest in multilingual contextswhere different speakers have different access to linguistic and other resources. She is the co-author of Language Change in Central Asia (Mouton de Gruyter 2016) and the bilingual Kazakh-Russian Dictionary of Sociolinguistics (2020). She has more 20 articles and book chapters published internationally and locally, including papers in journals such as International Journal of Bilingualism, Journal of Sociolinguistics, International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, World Englishes, International Journal of Sociology of Language, and Journal of Eurasian Studies. 

Topic: Multilingual education in Kazakhstan: Policy and implementation

Abstract ▼

This paper examines the implementation of a multilingual education policy in Kazakhstan. Considering the current language policy and sociolinguistic context of Kazakhstan, it focuses on major achievements and challenges to the implementation of a multilingual education policy in secondary schools (Grades 1-11). Teachers, students, parents, experts in language education were asked about the value of multilingualism and multilingual education as well as language education practices in their schools. Research data were collected through qualitatively designed instruments such as interviews and focus group discussions, and quantitatively designed instruments of survey. This paper first outlines the sociolinguistic situation and language policy, then it describes the factors of success, and finally it draws attention to contributory factors that hinder implementation of multilingual education in the country. These include different interpretations of multilingual education by major stakeholders, pedagogical weaknesses, lack of institutionalization and resources, etc. The paper finishes with practical recommendations for implementation of multilingual education in Kazakhstan.

Professor Angel LIN

(The Education University of Hong Kong)

Dr. Angel M. Y. Lin was Professor and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Plurilingual and Intercultural Education at Simon Fraser University, Canada (2018-2024). Currently she is Chair Professor of Language, Literacy and Social Semiotics in Education at the Education University of Hong Kong. Dr. Lin has been at the forefront of English language education and critical literacies since the late 1990s when she started working on classroom research projects in Hong Kong. She has published widely on second language education, discourse analysis, translanguaging (TL), trans-semiotizing (TS), Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL), and English medium education (EME). Over her career, she has published over 200 publications with over 13,600 citations and an impressive h-index of 58 and an i-10 index of 143.

Topic: Decolonizing English Medium Education Through the PAA Model and 4T Lenses

Abstract ▼

In this keynote paper I explore the potential of the PAA Model and the 4T Lenses to pluralize and decolonize English Medium Education (EME). By emphasizing affective decolonization, I argue for the necessity of recognizing emotions as socially embedded practices tied to power dynamics, drawing on the works of Sara Ahmed and Michalinos Zembylas. The PAA Model (Plurilingualism, Affect, Agency) advocates for a linguistically inclusive and emotionally aware educational environment that acknowledges the historical traumas of colonialism and their impact on EME.

In conjunction with the PAA Model, I will present the 4T Lenses—Translanguaging, Trans-semiotizing, Transknowledging, and Trans-culturing—as frameworks to enhance the integration of diverse semiotic, cultural and epistemic resources in EME. By fostering a transformative vision for EME, this paper calls for educators to embrace an affective decolonizing approach to EME that prioritizes emotional well-being, cultural relevance, and epistemic diversity, ultimately working towards a more sustainable and inclusive EME.

Dr Bridget GOODMAN

(Nazarbayev University)

Bridget Goodman is Associate Professor of Multilingual Education at Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan. Her dissertation was an ethnographic case study of EMI at a Ukrainian university. Since earning her PhD in 2013, she has published individually and with colleagues from Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and the UK on themes including: 1) EMI policy; 2) EMI and translanguaging; 3) EMI and multilingual academic skills development; and 4) EMI policy and practice across Eurasian contexts. She was recently named country coordinator for Kazakhstan by the British Association of Lecturers of English for Academic Purposes (BALEAP) EMI group.

Topic: English-Medium Education in Kazakhstan: Opportunities and Challenges for Development

Abstract ▼

The purpose of this paper is, through a review of recent research on English-Medium Education (EME) in Kazakhstan – including research co-conducted by the presenter – to unpack the rationales, opportunities, and challenges of teaching in English in a post-Soviet, Central Asian context where Kazakh or Russian are the dominant languages of communication and instruction. The presentation will focus on policies of EMI in secondary and higher education, and describe the rationales of those policies as aiming toward goals of development of scientific knowledge of secondary and higher education, and internationalization of higher education. The presentation will then offer a review of empirical findings in Kazakhstan and similar contexts of challenges and benefits of EMI for different stakeholders in five dimensions: 1) institutional, 2) social, 3) cultural, 4) linguistic, and 5) pedagogical. The author will conclude that while some benefits are obtainable, others are either a threat to the local language ecology, a threat to the local economy and human capital development, or unrealistic without adequate institutional, linguistic, and pedagogical supports.

Professor Mette HJORT

(The Education University of Hong Kong)

Mette Hjort is Chair Professor of Film and Media at the Education University of Hong Kong, Honorary Professor at the School of European Languages, Culture and Society at University College London, Affiliate Professor of Scandinavian Studies at the University of Washington, Seatlle, and Honorary Professor at the School of Creative Arts, University of Lincoln, UK. Mette has published extensively on small-nation cinema, transnational cinema, talent development in film, the cinema’s role in creating public value, and, more recently film’s contribution to health and well-being. A former member of the board of the Danish Film Institute, Mette has served as a trustee of the Media Archive of Central England, and of Learning on Screen. She was the President of the Jury at the Zanzibar International Film Festival in 2024 and is currently developing a Zanzibar-based international experiential learning opportunity for students from Hong Kong and Zanzibar.

Topic: Sketching the Contours of a Cinema of Care: Hong Kong's Ann Hui as a Paradigmatic Figure

Abstract ▼

Current interest in care and caring is linked to the emergence of catastrophic risks arising from humanity’s acquisition, in the course of the last century, of the ability to destroy itself. The claim is that care and caring now function as hypergoods or moral sources, as frameworks enabling us to orient ourselves in moral space, to define our identities, and to evaluate the relative worth of different courses of action. In this sense ‘care’ and ‘caring’ are virtue terms of the 21st century. A distinction is made between a cinema of care as a type and a cinema of care as a token. Whereas the type is the general category, the token is a concrete, localised manifestation of the category. A definition of the general type is proffered, with one feature—the avoidance of harm—being foregrounded as a necessary condition. With an eye to pinpointing what a Chinese caring cinema localised in Hong Kong might look like, Ann Hui’s contribution to Hong Kong cinema and, more specifically, her 2011 film, A Simple Life, are explored as a concrete token of the general category of a cinema of care.

Dr Moldiyar YERGEBEKOV

(Akhmet Yasawi International Kazakh-Turkish University)

Dr. Moldiyar Yergebekov is an associate professor at Akhmet Yasawi International Kazakh-Turkish University. He holds a PhD in Communication Studies (Radio-Television-Cinema) from Ankara University (Türkiye). His doctoral thesis focused on the role of Kazakh cinema in the nation-state building process. Throughout his career, he has worked at several universities, including Temirbek Jurgenov National Academy of Fine Arts, Kyrgyz-Turkish Manas University, the University of Utah, Gaziantep University and AlmaU. His research and publications cover various topics, including critical theory, film and media studies, national cinema, the political economy of Kazakhstani media, gender, and the public sphere. His teaching, research, and publications demonstrate three major areas of focus: social theory, media studies, and film studies. In addition to his academic work, he is the host of the TV program Sana on the Kazakh national TV channel Abai.

Topic: Decolonization and Kazakh Cinema

Abstract ▼

(TBA)

📽️ Film Screening

Film: Face the Music (Men Sen Emes) Length: 75 minutes Protagonists: Ninety One band, Kazakhstani experts in the fields of political science, culture and media, young music activists Director: Katerina Suvorova Country: Kazakhstan Language: Kazakh, Russian Translation: English subtitles Year: 2019 Key topics: QPOP, Today’s Youngsters, Reality, Kazakhstan, Youth, Generation Z

Face the music / in Kazakhstan

Dyed hair, earrings, bright clothes – this image is very different from masculinity standards in Kazakhstan. And that is exactly what the main characters of the documentary film Face the Music / in Kazakhstan look like. Many would not find anything unusual in the appearance of the members of the music band Ninety One, but their popularity among Kazakh-speaking teenagers ignited anger in a sector of society, leading to street protests, concert cancellations and pressure from the government. The emergence of Ninety One has opened a whole layer of social and cultural conflicts within Kazakhstani society – contradictions between urban and rural culture, between traditionalism and globalization, between the vertical power system and personal liberty.

Trailer

Ms Katerina Suvorova

(Film Director)

Katerina Suvorova is a Kazakhstani documentary filmmaker known for her powerful and thought-provoking work. Her films draw on the everyday lived experience of diverse communities across Kazakhstan and wider Central Asia. In 2019, Katerina's social issue documentary FACE THE MUSIC about the conflict between the popular Kazakh band, Ninety One and local traditionalists made a rare impact by not only participating in film festivals but also achieving commercial success in Kazakhstan's national box office. Suvorova is also the founder of the independent documentary studio TIHIY SVET (Silent Light) in Almaty, Kazakhstan, dedicated to producing films with a significant social impact. Her award winning film projects also include Sea Tomorrow (2016), Medianstan (2014), Qyzbolsyn: May It Be A Girl (in development).

🎼 Dombra Music Performance

Instrument: Dombra Status: arguably the most popular and celebrated musical instrument among the Kazakh people, which is frequently associated with the nomadic lifestyle, virtuosity, and the national or ethnic identity Tuning: the tuning of dombra is usually in perfect fourths (e.g., D-G) or perfect fifths (e.g., C-G), and the modern standardised dombra has nineteen frets in equal temperament Küi: A genre of narrative instrumental music which serves as a major vehicle of cultural expression among the Kazakhs; the more typical definition of küi is a solo dombra piece.

Two Küis:

• “Ерке Сылқым” (“The Cherished Beauty”) by Abdimomyn Jeldibaev (1934-2024)

• “Балбырауын” (“Balbyrauyn”) by Kurmangazy Sagyrbaiuly (1823-1896)

Mr Kenneth Fang

(Research Assistant, LCS, EdUHK)

Dombra Performer

🏫 Organizing Committee

Event Conveners

Convener: Prof John Erni (Dean of FHM, EdUHK)
Co-Convener: Dr Wang Lixun (Associate Dean (International Engagement) of FHM, EdUHK)

Organizing Committee Members

Coordinator: Dr Artem Zadorozhnyy (ELE, EdUHK)
Co-coordinator: Dr Zhang Zimu (LCS, EdUHK)

Committee Members:
Dr Banerjee, Bidisha (LCS, EdUHK)
Dr Chang Tsung-chi Hawk (LCS, EdUHK)
Dr Fung Chi Wang (LCS, EdUHK)
Dr Gu Mingyue Michelle (GS, EdUHK)
Prof Hjort, Mette (LCS, EdUHK)
Dr Lau Chaak Ming (CRLLS, EdUHK)
Dr Lee Ju Seong (ELE, EdUHK)
Dr Wang Lixun (LML, EdUHK)

Administrative Support Team

Hong Kong meets Kazakhstan: A Humanities Cultural Crossroads within the Belt & Road. Last updated: 23/10/2024.