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Group photo of 15 Pakistani educators returned home recently after completing a 3-week summer course at Plymouth State University (PSU), New Hampshire. Funded by the U.S. State Department, the summer institute is a collaboration between PSU and Lahore-based NGO Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi (ITA).
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Lahore - A group of 15 Pakistani educators returned home recently after completing a 3-week summer course at Plymouth State University (PSU), New Hampshire U.S. Funded by the U.S. State Department, the summer institute is a collaboration between PSU and Lahore-based NGO Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi (ITA).
Talking about the program, ITA’s Saima Hasrat remarked that “people-to-people interaction is significant to remove misconceptions about each other,” while Assistant Professor Mubasher Nadeem, from Lahore’s University of Education, said that the program “broadened his vision.” Other participants termed the program a “wonderful experience” and the graduation ceremony a “memorable event.”
In Washington, D.C., the group met with Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs John Gastright and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Educational and Cultural Affairs Alina Romanowski. The educators also met representatives from Senator Judd Gregg’s office, Pakistan Embassy, and State Department’s Education and Cultural Affairs Office. PSU’s Blake Allen steered the 2007 program.
The program was initiated in 2004; since then 80 educators, including senior subject specialists at secondary level, have participated in it. The categories covered under the program are English, Mathematics, Science and School Leadership.
According to figures compiled by the ITA, Pakistani alumni have trained around 10,000 educators in their role as master-trainers.
Participants selected for the Pakistan Educational Leadership Institute (PELI) represented the following institutions: Departments of Education in Punjab and Azad Jammu and Kashmir; Sindh Education Foundation; Allama Iqbal Open University; University of Education; Directorate of Staff Development; University of Punjab; Federal College of Education; Sanjan Nagar Public Education Trust; and Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi
The purpose of the PELI summer institute is to enhance knowledge and skills of selected educators and administrators. This year’s program focused on research and evaluation techniques to track the impact of teacher education.
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