One of the biggest problems faced by the country today is the lack of quality education. There are many ways to ensure transmission of good quality education. One of the most effective methods to achieve this goal is to improve the teaching quality in our public schools.
These views were expressed by Salma Ahmad Alam, CEO Durbeen. She said that aim of the organization is to establish government schools across Sindh that deliver quality education which is relevant to the 21st century. They are trying to achieve this goal by reforming the pre-service teacher training centers. Durbeen believes in quality over quantity and they believe that the delivery of quality education requires a highly trained teaching workforce.
She also said Pakistan needs teachers that are trained before they step into the field. This will ensure that, from the first day of their career they will be able to handle any professional challenge that they might face. Durbeen, an education based non-profit organization working in Sindh is trying to play its part in revamping the education system.
She said that public schools are using an education system that is not aligned with the demands of the 21st century. Whether you are a K-12 teacher or a college or a university teacher; this competitive world have made it extremely important to enhance your critical thinking, employing advanced problem solving methods, efficient communication, to collaborate, and to use effectively technology.
According to Salma Ahmad Alam, the main problem with the existing education system is that, our education system is not aligned with the demands of the 21st century. Whether a school graduate plans to enter the workforce directly, or attend a vocational school, college, or university, it is now a requirement to be able to think critically, solve problems, communicate, collaborate, find good information quickly, and use technology effectively.
These are today's survival skills not only for career success, but for personal and civic quality of life as well. Salma said that our public schools, and even the most elite private schools, are not in sync with these demands. Our education system continues to prioritize rote-memorization and lecture as modes of delivery for education. There are several elements that need to come together to ensure quality education but nothing compares with the central role of the teacher.
"I think there have certainly been benefits in the devolution of education. Systems are more contextually-attuned, the closer the administration gets to the grassroots. Having said this, our education system suffers from capacity issues across the board. And hence the capacity issues that limit student learning in classrooms are the same issues that stunt education management and governance reforms in the districts.
The development of Pakistan's human resource is the single greatest need of the hour," replied Salma, when asked about whether the 18th amendment will benefit the education system or not. Durbeen has been a concept in the making for 10 year. I realized the critical importance of teacher quality as early as 2008, while I was volunteering with the Zindagi Trust government schools, said Salma.
When I went to Harvard in 2012, I took some courses on teaching and learning which made me appreciate just how non-intuitive good teaching can be. In Pakistan, we assume that anyone with a content degree, in say Mathematics, is automatically qualified to teach that subject but the art of teaching is so much more complex and specialized than that. The need for a professional teacher education institution in Pakistan began to crystallize during this time.