In mid-May, covert assessments of the second stage of the LinguaCollage project were conducted by methodological and linguistic experts from International University of Information Technologies JSC: Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Languages, Dinara Aliyeva, and Candidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Languages, Oksana Bublikova. The primary objective was to evaluate how students use the Russian and English languages with reference to the Akelius application materials when completing a creative task; to identify signs of conscious language use and the level of independence under limited resource conditions. The assessment took place in the city of Astana, involving 4th- and 7th-grade students of School-Gymnasium No. 75, and in the city of Shymkent, with participants from the 5th grade of Secondary School No. 122 and the 5th and 6th grades of School-Gymnasium No. 50 named after Akhmet Baitursynov.

At the second stage of the LinguaCollage project, students were given a creative task — to create a thematic collage for a fictional alien character who is striving to learn Russian and English. The work was carried out both in groups and individually, which allowed for consideration of the students’ varying levels of language proficiency and their preferred interaction styles. Initially, the children began by selecting textual and visual materials. As sources, they used both elements provided by the methodologists and content already familiar to them through the Akelius platform. Texts and images on everyday topics — such as “Hobbies,” “Family,” “At the Doctor’s,” “Weather,” “Travel,” and others — served as the foundation for the collage composition. Students annotated the chosen images with words, expressions, and phrases in Russian and English, and provided brief explanations of why each element was included in the collage and what role it would play in teaching the alien character. Upon completing the visual part of the project, the participants presented their collages. In a short oral defense format (2–3 minutes), each group explained how their selected materials would help the fictional character acquire the languages. Special attention was paid to the logic of collage composition: the sequence of thematic development, the coherence between images and captions, and the clarity and accessibility of the linguistic content for the imaginary learner. During both the creative process and the presentations, instances of linguistic activity were observed. Students actively used phrases and constructions learned through the Akelius platform, demonstrating recognition of the material, integration of content into productive activities, and the ability to apply previously acquired knowledge in new communicative situations. Creative thinking and originality were also tracked throughout the process. Students often expanded the task by adding mini-stories, inventing backstories for the character, incorporating dialogues, and in some cases, even giving names to their aliens — all of which reflected a high level of personal engagement in the learning scenario.

Language expert Dinara Aliyeva emphasized that a new narrative development emerged in the collages: “In several 4th grade groups, students expanded on the idea — the alien character successfully learned the languages and began teaching their friends. This is a symbolic gesture that reflects an understanding of the role of language as a means of learning and knowledge transmission.”

The language and methodological expert also noted differences between the classes where the assessments were conducted. For example, the 7th grade students were less active this time, which could be attributed to the late timing of the task and general fatigue at the end of the academic year. Nevertheless, they referred to Akelius orally, demonstrating recognition, but did not reflect this in writing within their collages. In contrast, the 4th grade students manually wrote the name “Akelius,” demonstrating a conscious effort to link their work with the platform. This indicates a more direct engagement and emotional connection to the learning environment among younger students.

Language expert Oksana Bublikova noted that one of the groups independently wrote out Akelius-synonymous expressions by hand. Overall, they matched the sentences and images correctly (with a slight degree of misunderstanding of the Russian language). They chose not to draw, although this option had been suggested by the methodologist. “The students have a sufficiently good understanding of the Russian language to attempt to explain whether a particular topic helped the alien learn Russian. Interestingly, the students did not try to speak in English, as Akelius is used in Russian,” concluded Oksana Vasilyeva.

Thus, the workflow was built on the principles of an activity-based approach: from selecting materials to their comprehension, from visualization to oral speech, and from reproductive reproduction to the creation of an original product.

Linguistic and methodological experts shared their observations and conclusions based on the results of the second stage of the LinguaCollage project and proposed a number of recommendations. A comparative analysis of the data collected during the second stage of the LinguaCollage project revealed several significant trends. In particular, the format of this stage, implemented at School No. 75 in Astana, involved fewer participants and a more limited set of materials. Nevertheless, these conditions proved to be productive: they fostered students’ independence, linguistic engagement, and a creative approach to completing the task. Children participated with great enthusiasm, independently selecting materials, actively using previously learned language structures, and striving to logically and artistically link visual and textual elements in their collages. Notably, younger students not only recognized and reproduced phrases from the Akelius platform but also demonstrated initiative by writing the name of the application by hand, thereby emphasizing their conscious connection to the digital resource used. One of the most inspiring observations was that students expanded the proposed storyline: in some projects, the alien, having mastered the languages, began teaching their friends, thus becoming a symbol of knowledge sharing. This image reflects students’ understanding of language as a means of intercultural communication and knowledge transmission. The analysis of student work in Shymkent schools showed that the degree of Akelius integration varies depending on the language of instruction and the duration of platform usage. In classes where Akelius had been recently introduced (e.g., at Secondary School No. 122), phrase and image recognition from the application was limited, and material selection appeared more random than deliberate. Students generally associated language learning with positive emotions, selecting only friendly and peaceful images for their collages. The theme of "Sports" proved especially popular, as it was the most relatable and understandable for the students. Interestingly, at Specialized Gymnasium No. 50 named after Akhmet Baitursynov, students used the application primarily in Russian. This contributed to a deeper understanding of the content and, consequently, to more active use of Russian-language phrases, including those written by hand. High levels of creativity were also observed: children gave names to characters, included symbolic elements, and even developed storylines that reflected the language acquisition process.

Thus, it can be concluded that the successful integration of digital tools such as Akelius directly depends on the language of instruction, the level of methodological support, and the duration of use. When the language of the task matches the language of the application's interface, students apply the learned material more meaningfully and demonstrate more productive forms of speech activity.

Based on the collected data and analysis of the results from the second phase of the project, language experts proposed the following recommendations for further development and scaling of the initiative:

1. Utilize small groups and clearly structured tasks limited by specific themes, which promotes increased student autonomy, awareness, and linguistic initiative.
2. Actively develop narrative and role-playing approaches in assignments: the use of the alien character first as a learner and then as a teacher had a strong emotional and motivational impact.
3. Strengthen methodological support for teachers, especially in schools where Akelius has been recently introduced. Additional training on the effective use of digital resources is necessary.
4. Pay close attention to the language of instruction and the language of the interface: mismatches may cause difficulties in recognizing and using the content. It is important to design tasks that observe the principle of language congruence or apply a “bilingual bridge” strategy.
5. Develop assignments aimed at comparing phrases and images from different languages and sources, which contributes to the development of learner awareness and lexical-grammatical flexibility.
6. Conduct regular assessment activities (both formative and summative), including elements of self-assessment and peer assessment, to monitor progress, foster motivation, and enhance reflection.
7. Create conditions for personal involvement: allow students to independently formulate tasks, select materials, and develop characters and stories. This builds sustainable learning motivation and expands the boundaries of linguistic thinking.

Thus, the LinguaCollage assessment has proven its effectiveness as an innovative model for the development of linguistic and sociocultural competence, especially in the context of integrating digital technologies. With proper implementation, Akelius can become not merely an auxiliary tool but a full-fledged part of the educational process, enhancing the quality and accessibility of language education in schools across Kazakhstan.

It is recommended to further scale the project taking into account regional specificities, as well as to incorporate the results into methodological guidelines for the development of linguistic and sociocultural competence in the context of multicultural Kazakhstan.