Contact
Biography
Natallia Yakavets joined the Centre for Research in Educational Leadership and Management (CRELM) in April 2023. Prior to this, she served as a Senior Research Associate at the University of Cambridge Faculty of Education from 2012. Her research focuses primarily on educational leadership and policy in transitional and post‑Soviet contexts. She also maintains wide-ranging interests in systemic education reform, inter‑agency and school‑to‑school collaboration, leadership preparation and development, and inclusive leadership for equity and social justice.
During her time at Cambridge, Natallia collaborated extensively with colleagues at Nazarbayev University's Graduate School of Education in Astana, Kazakhstan. Together, they conducted multi-year, mixed‑methods research examining how schools across Kazakhstan were enacting a nationwide education reform. This work has informed national policy dialogues, strengthened the evidence base for system-wide improvement, and supported large-scale capacity-building initiatives across the country. The research is documented in Mapping Education Change in Kazakhstan (Cambridge University Press, 2023).
Natallia has also served as an international consultant for UNICEF, where she contributed to the design and pilot of an early warning system aimed at preventing school dropout in Kazakhstan. This initiative resulted in the development of a practitioner-focused guide for social pedagogues and educational staff, supporting the implementation of preventative, data-informed interventions in schools.
Deeply committed to ensuring that research leads to meaningful, real-world impact, Natallia continues to work at the intersection of scholarship, policy, and practice to advance more equitable, effective, and inclusive educational systems.
Expertise Summary
Educational leadership; Education policy and reform
Leadership development in transitional societies
Teacher education, pedagogy, and teacher agency
Collaboration, partnership and networks
Inclusive leadership for social justice and equity
Teaching Summary
Natallia teaches and supervises dissertations on the MA in Educational Leadership and Management programme.
She is currently co-supervising PhD and EdD students with colleagues at the CRELM.
Natallia taught and supervised MPhil dissertations on the Educational Leadership and Improvement course at the University of Cambridge Faculty of Education. She acted as an internal examiner for PhD viva and for EdD upgrade reports at the University of Cambridge.
Experience of crafting and delivering high-quality, research led, teaching programmes at all levels in high education.
Research Summary
Natallia has worked on large collaborative research projects with teams in diverse contexts (e.g., England, Central Asia) and has extensive international experience in educational research, needs… read more
Recent Publications
YAKAVETS, N., WINTER., L., KAMBATYROVA, A. and RAMAZANOVA, A., 2023. Piloting the renewed content of education. In: MCLAUGHLIN, C., WINTER, L. and YAKAVETS, N., eds., Mapping Educational Change in Kazakhstan Cambridge University Press. 95-111 YAKAVETS, N., MALONE, K., ZHONTAYEVA, Z. and QANAY, G., 2023. Regional case study 3: A regional study of stakeholders' perspectives on education reform in Kazakhstan. In: MCLAUGHLIN, C., WINTER, L. and YAKAVETS, N., eds., Mapping Educational Change in Kazakhstan Cambridge University Press. 257-279 MAKOELLE T., M., HERNANDEZ-TORRANO, D., SOMERTON, M. and YAKAVETS, N., 2023. Diversity, equity and inclusion in Kazakhstani schools. In: MCLAUGHLIN, C., WINTER, L. and YAKAVETS, N., eds., Mapping Educational Change in Kazakhstan Cambridge University Press. 75-92
Current Research
Natallia has worked on large collaborative research projects with teams in diverse contexts (e.g., England, Central Asia) and has extensive international experience in educational research, needs assessment, monitoring and evaluation of educational initiatives and comparative perspectives. She is interested how education policy translated into practice and how school leaders make decision and support equity and inclusion.
Natallia was a co-investigator working with Prof Toby Greany (PI) and Dr Mike Adkins on the evaluation of the Western Excellence in Learning and Leadership programme (WELL 2021-2024), year 3. Funder Cumbria County Council. See https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/research/groups/crelm/projects/index.aspx#well
Past Research
Co-investigator: "Translation and continuity of educational innovations in the secondary education system in Kazakhstan" (a longitudinal study: 2018-2020).
Co-investigator and lead international consultant on UNICEF project: 'The institutional consultancy to support the Ministry of Education in review and improvement of existing early warning mechanism for preventing, identifying, and responding to school dropouts" (2018-2021).