Ybyrai Altynsarin is one of the first Kazakh educators and enlighteners who played a key role in shaping the new secular system of education and in the development of pedagogical thought in Kazakhstan. His ideas, formed in the context of the socio-economic transformations of the 19th century, continue to exert a significant influence on modern pedagogical practice.

The article examines the historical and pedagogical aspects of Altynsarin’s multifaceted activity: the organization of new-type schools, the introduction of advanced teaching methods, the training of teachers, and the creation of textbooks and chrestomathies for Kazakh children. Special attention is paid to his aspiration to integrate the traditions of folk pedagogy with the requirements of modernization, which made it possible to lay the foundation for a renewed national model of education.

One of the most important directions of his work was the establishment of secular schools for Kazakh boys and girls. Altynsarin was convinced that only through systematic education could the nation rise to the level of culturally developed peoples. He personally selected teachers, developed class schedules, and prepared methodological guidelines. His schools became centers of enlightenment where children studied not only their native culture, but also mathematics, natural sciences, and the Russian language, which opened new social opportunities for them.

Altynsarin was the first Kazakh reformer to actively promote female education. In the patriarchal context of the 19th century, he boldly advocated for the opening of schools and boarding houses for girls, emphasizing that societal development is impossible without educated women – the future mothers, educators, and guardians of family values. His efforts in this direction represented a historical breakthrough and became a precursor to modern gender-equality programs in education.