Kazakhstan has updated its personal safety lessons for kindergartens, schools and colleges, adding more than 140 topics that range from how to behave around strangers to online fraud, the website infohub.kz reports.
The Ministry of Education said the topics were selected according to age. Preschoolers are taught who to turn to for help if they get lost and how to behave around strangers. Younger schoolchildren cover personal boundaries, suspicious links and fire evacuation rules.
"For teenagers, the topics include bullying and cyberbullying, online fraud, protection of personal data, fake news, deepfakes and the safe use of artificial intelligence. Situations involving pressure, blackmail, extortion and stalking are also covered," the ministry said.
According to the Ministry of Education, high school students and college students will also examine "easy money" schemes and dropper activity — the use of someone else's bank card or account to transfer money. Other topics include job scams, dangerous online acquaintances, manipulation and attempts to draw young people into illegal activity.
The classes are held once a week and take up 10 minutes of a class or homeroom period.
"Children will work through real-life situations, learn to recognize threats, protect themselves and understand who to turn to for help," the ministry's press service explained.
The ministry developed the new topics together with UNICEF and relevant government agencies.
Earlier, Kursiv wrote that schoolchildren in grades 2 through 11 in Kazakhstan will be assessed under new rules. In grades 2–4 of Kazakh schools, traditional summative assessment for the term and the year is to be removed. Formative assessment, along with thematic and final tests, is being introduced instead.
Meanwhile, the first knowledge check since the abolition of summative assessment for the term and the year has already begun in schools.