Principal

Ybyrai Mektebi School

East Kazakhstan

Aralbek Berikuly is an educator, school leader, and educational entrepreneur from Kazakhstan. He currently serves as Principal of Ybyrai Mektebi, a public rural school and kindergarten complex in East Kazakhstan, where he leads efforts to transform the school into a center for learning, community development, and educational innovation.

Aralbek’s journey into education began unexpectedly. While studying mathematics at university, he started tutoring secondary school students and quickly discovered a passion for helping young people learn and grow. What began as a part-time job became a lifelong mission: to contribute to the improvement of education and expand opportunities for children, especially those living in rural communities.

Over the years, he founded the SMART BiLiM educational center, authored mathematics learning materials, produced more than 1,000 educational video lessons, and contributed to Kazakhstan’s national television lessons during the COVID-19 pandemic. His work has reached thousands of students and teachers across the country.

At the heart of Aralbek’s educational philosophy is a simple belief: education is first about people. He believes that students learn best when they feel understood, respected, and connected to meaningful learning experiences. His teaching approach emphasizes clear explanations, storytelling, real-life applications, strong relationships, and the development of character alongside academic achievement.

Today, Aralbek is particularly interested in systems thinking, leadership development, teacher learning, rural education, and the role of schools as catalysts for positive social change. He believes that many educational challenges cannot be solved through isolated initiatives but require deeper understanding of the systems, relationships, and assumptions that shape human behavior and organizational culture.

As a school leader and father of five children, he is committed to building learning environments where young people can develop the knowledge, values, and capabilities needed to improve their communities and contribute positively to the world.

Through the Compassionate Systems Master Practitioner Program, he hopes to strengthen his capacity to support meaningful and sustainable transformation in education while learning from an international community of practitioners dedicated to human flourishing and well-being.