Author Archives: Teachers' Resource Centre

In February 2014, UNESCO published a paper titled “Teacher training in support of Early Childhood Education in Pakistan: A case study of the Teachers’ Resource Centre” authored by our Academic Programmes Advisor and ECE expert, Mahenaz Mahmud. Against the backdrop of Pakistan’s challenging and multi faceted educational context, the author expands the focus to reinforce significance of ECE and lack of cross-sectoral institutional capacity and buy-in for professional development of early years teachers and school environments. She explains why it is imperative to bring reforms to teacher training in ECE and for elevating the status of teachers. TRC’s ongoing efforts to create innovative and challenging opportunities for ECE teachers are discussed. Through ECE-CP, TRC aims to help teachers to evolve into educators who not only nurture a passion for working with children but also develop a holistic understanding of what children are all about and how best they learn. Since ECE-CP is designed to both support and challenge aspiring and experienced ECE teachers, the programme’s framework is highlighted as one which lays the foundations for lifelong learning for those who want to enrich their work with children. You can read and download the paper by clicking on the link below: TRC Case Study

TRC held its 27th Annual General Meeting this quarter, which was attended by representatives of the Governing Body as well as member schools. The meeting had been delayed due to the pending USAID SRP audit upon completion of which we were able to call the meeting. Our new project on critical thinking skills kept our calendars packed with activities and deadlines. It’s been a great start as far as establishing liaison with different levels of stakeholders is concerned. TRC led the formation of a Working Group with members from different public and private sector organisations to initiate work on critical thinking modules for ECE to primary levels. We also set up a National Review Committee to help the project with advocacy and policy level reforms at the national level. Our work in eight community schools of Sehwan, as part of the PSS project, continued with our teams making consecutive visits to the field for supporting GRS implementation, baseline assessment, teacher training refresher and CAB meeting. Through PSSP, we also made possible provision of activity based learning resources for children and resource kits for teachers. On the workshop programme front, an 84-hour course for primary teachers, based on five modules, was introduced and nine multi school workshops were carried out. TRC Case Study published by UNESCO In February 2014, UNESCO published a paper titled “Teacher training in support of Early Childhood Education in Pakistan: A case study of the Teachers’ Resource Centre” authored by our Academic Programmes Advisor and ECE expert, Mahenaz Mahmud. Against the backdrop of Pakistan’s challenging and multi faceted educational context, the author expands the focus to reinforce significance of ECE and lack of cross-sectoral institutional capacity and buy-in for professional development of early years teachers and school environments. She explains why it is imperative to bring reforms to teacher training in ECE and for elevating the status of teachers. TRC’s ongoing efforts to create innovative and challenging opportunities for ECE teachers are discussed. Through ECE-CP, TRC aims to help teachers to evolve into educators who not only nurture a passion for working with children but also develop a holistic understanding of what children are all about and how best they learn. Since ECE-CP is designed to both support and challenge aspiring and experienced ECE teachers, the programme’s framework is highlighted as one which lays the foundations for lifelong learning for those who want to enrich their work with children. You can read and download the paper by clicking on the link below: TRC Case Study TRC Trending… TRC is on Facebook! We encourage all our readers to like us and subscribe to our page. Link up with us, ask questions, discuss issues, exchange views and help us in cultivating an empowering online community of ECE practitioners and activists … Lets connect to make a difference! https://www.facebook.com/TRCPakistan

Dear Readers,

Please check out our new Opinion Poll on whether teachers should be held responsible for their students’ academic performance and cast your vote by the end of April 2014. As you know …

your opinion counts

Our March 2014 poll was about Extracurricular Activities:

Extracurricular activities should be made mandatory in schools, because they are an important part of a well-rounded education.

• I agree. Alongside broadening one’s education, extracurricular activities look good on college applications. They also offer health benefits and help children develop important social skills. (98%, 41 Votes)

• I disagree. Extracurricular activities distract from academics and are expensive for schools to offer. When you make them compulsory for students, they also become less attractive. (2%, 1 Votes)

The overwhelming majority of the respondents, who took part in this poll, feel that schools should offer mandatory extracurricular activities as part of a wide-ranging education. They believe that not only do extracurricular activities help enhance students’ credentials, but that they also offer several other benefits such as improved health and social skills. On the other hand, a mere 1% of the respondents believe that schools should not offer compulsory extracurricular activities, because they distract from academics and can also be expensive.