PAKISTAN •EDUCATION

Education        Travel       Info

SISTER SCHOOL PROJECT

The goal of the sister school project is to compile contact information of schools in different regions of the world to provide the possibility of establishing sister school relationships.  The sister school project will be accomplished through the following three components: pictures/images of schools around the world, a forum (as internet access allows) where students from different schools can discuss student life, and written correspondence between schools and students where internet access is not possible.

Name: FGG Girls Primary School (both girls and boys attend the school) Location: Dana (small village outside of Islamabad), Pakistan Number of teachers: 4 Number of Students: 101 Ages of students: 4-12 (primary school up to class five) Subjects: Urdu (national language of Pakistan), English, Math, Science, Social Studies School Hours: 8:00am - 1:00 pm Monday through Saturday.  The first Saturday of each month is free to allow teachers to cash their checks.  Summer vacation begins at the start of June and extends through the end of August. Interesting Facts: Although it is not a law, according to Naveed, many primary schools in Pakistan only employ female teachers with the reasoning that female teachers are more nurturing for younger students. Foreign Aid: The school is one of sixty-five schools in the area being assisted by USAid.  USAid provides students with backpacks, pens, pencils and notebooks, as well as providing funding for teacher salaries and the general school budget Facility: FGG Girls school is neat and well-kept.  The teachers, principal and janitorial staff work hard to create the best learning environment with the materials they have.  However, even with the assistance from USAid, there are not enough classrooms and one class must work outside under the hallway awning or in the school yard.

Click for more images

FORUM                                  SCHOOL PEN PALS

EDUCATOR PERSPECTIVES PROJECT

The educator perspectives project highlights the life of educators through interviews and surveys.  The following are a sampling of typical questions asked:

• How many subjects do you teach?
• How do you get to work?
• How long is your workday?
• Approximately how much do you earn monthly?
• What level of respect does an educator hold in your country?
• What level of education is needed to be a teacher in your country?
• How many students are in your class?
• How do you discipline your students?

Educators                                                                                       

Name: Miss Naveed Age: 30 Location: Islamabad, Pakistan Subject: Grade 2 Primary Education Teacher Education: Bachelor's of Arts in Teaching and Master's of Arts in English Job availability: It is very competitive to secure a teaching position in Pakistan, according to Naveed, especially around the major city centers of Islamabad, Karachi or Lahore.  The acquire a good job, teachers must take and pass a standardized exam, participate in an interview and pass a medical test.  Although a Bachelor's Degree is required to teach outside of extremely rural ares, a Master's Degree makes a perspective teacher more competitive. Salary: Naveed's teaching position is funded by USAid and as a result she gets paid 10,000 R.S./month (about US$165/month), while the other teachers earn 5,000-6,000 R.S./month (about US$85/month).  In comparison, the principal of the school earns about 11,000 R.S./month (about US$185/month).  Due to Naveed's higher salary, supported by USAid funding, the competition for her position was extremely strong.  Naveed was required to have a Master's Degree, pass a standardized exam, complete a series of interviews and pass a medical exam. Interesting information: Although Naveed is getting married in September (and after marriage many women do not work in Pakistan, although this idea is becoming less common), she will continue with her teaching position for at least one more year, as she has developed a very strong relationship with her students and desires to work in an area where there are students in great need of support and loving care.

CULTURAL MISCONCEPTIONS PROJECT

The goal of our education program is to establish a platform for discussion of cross-cultural perspectives and misconceptions.  Our intention is to use this platform to expose some of the cultural misconceptions that exist today, in the hopes of supporting cross-cultural understanding.  To join our cultural misconceptions forum, please sign in below.

FORUM

We have established an area within the cultural misconceptions project where a variety of disciplines can complete specific projects relating to student perspectives.  The goal of this platform is to allow cross-cultural sharing and exchange of ideas for exploring misconceptions.  Visit a discipline below to see different school projects, create your own project, and sign your school up to become part of this initiative.