The "giant" school in Sergeli: how are over 7,000 students studying in one school?

The "giant" school in Sergeli: How are over 7,000 students studying in one school?

School No. 300 in the Sergeli district admitted 19 first-grade classes and a total of 665 new students in 2026. This situation has sparked intense questions on social networks. The large number of students naturally raises questions for many: can the school accommodate so many children, and what are the conditions like? A "Daryo" correspondent visited this educational institution to get a closer look at the situation.

Currently, 7,232 children are studying at the school, divided into 188 classes. The educational institution occupies an area of 7 hectares and consists of 4 separate buildings. Primary classes, Uzbek, and Russian groups are housed in separate buildings. Another building is designed for teaching subjects in small groups. According to the administration, this arrangement prevents congestion or disorder in the corridors.

"There are many children in the school; anyone who hears about it is amazed. However, there are no noticeable, shocking problems in our school. We have an established system. If this process does not run like a system, chaos and disruption of the process could occur. Touch wood, even though we have many students, there have been no crimes," says the school principal, Nigora Saidkhojayeva.

The sports infrastructure is also quite extensive: the school has a total of 6 gyms, 5 of which measure 18 by 24 meters and one measuring 18 by 36 meters, as well as outdoor sports grounds and gymnasiums.

For the students, 2 cafeterias, 1 buffet, and restrooms equipped with indoor hot and cold water supply have been set up. Hot meals are also prepared for students in the cafeterias.

There is also a library for students to use at the school. It contains textbooks and fiction literature, creating conditions for children to read books during extracurricular hours.

"Teachers' workload is not increased beyond the norm"

A total of 291 teachers work at the school. There are 43 educators for the English language subject alone. The administration states that the daily workload of teachers is distributed based on regulatory documents, and excessive strain is not allowed.

"Teachers are never given an excessive workload. Teachers are assigned lessons of 1 or 1.5 rates. Some have taken 25-26 or 30 hours of lessons. There are regulatory documents for the distribution of lessons, and it is distributed based on that," says Malika Abdullayeva, the deputy principal for academic affairs.

According to her, in addition to their main teaching hours, teachers also have extra classes. For such classes, educators are paid according to the hours they work.

In order to improve the quality of lessons and save time, all classrooms are equipped with electronic whiteboards. Ready-made electronic materials for each topic and lesson stage are prepared in advance.

"Materials for each topic are ready. The teacher enters, opens the electronic whiteboard, and starts the lesson. We pay very close attention to every stage and every task of the 45 minutes. If the 45 minutes do not go according to plan, everything changes and they won't make it in time," says the deputy principal.

Is there a problem with textbooks?

With the start of the new school year, the issue of providing students with textbooks also becomes relevant. The school administration stated that there is no serious problem with textbooks.

"There is no problem with textbooks. The missing literature is still being delivered now. This issue will be finalized by September 15–20," says Malika Abdullayeva.

Foreign teachers also teach at the school

It was stated that special attention is paid to improving the quality of language teaching at School No. 300. While 3 foreign specialists were involved last year, their number has been increased to 5 this year. They are mainly responsible for developing students' speaking skills. It is noted that in the last academic year, out of 461 graduates of the school, 344 obtained national or international certificates, and the higher education enrollment rate stands at 85–87 percent.

The "School-Junior Academy" operates at the school

To bring out the talents of students, the "School-Junior Academy" operates at the educational institution. In it, children defend their projects in science olympiads, programming, robotics, scientific projects, and art directions.

Interest in the school is very high. Currently, 2,500 applications that were not accepted through the electronic platform are on the waiting list. The admission processes are fully digitized and are carried out automatically depending on the availability of vacant places.