Daily Times

The Higher Education Development in Pakistan (HEDP) project of the Higher Education Commission (HEC) team conducted a three-day capacity-building workshop for teachers at affiliated colleges in the ICT region.

The workshop was conducted by the Post-secondary Education Reform Unit (PERU) in coordination with the National Academy of Higher Education (NAHE), according to a news release. The Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training and the Federal Directorate of Education had requested training for 70 nominated teachers from associate and graduate colleges in Islamabad. The Undergraduate Education Policy (UEP) 2020 was approved by the HEC and will be implemented in Fall 2023.

The success of a policy depends on the preparedness of teachers, who constitute the foundation of an education system. For successful implementation of UEP, the faculty of higher education institutes must understand it well and be prepared to implement it in letter and spirit. The affiliated colleges are undergoing a transition from an annual system to a semester system under Education Policy 2020.

The introduction of associate degree programmes and bachelor’s degree programmes required significant procedural and regulatory changes in student admission, enrollment, registration, advisement system, internship, capstone project, assessment methods, attendance system, course design and conduct, learning management system, and using technology in teaching and assessment. For the first time, a special module on environment and sustainability was also added to create awareness among teachers regarding the SDGs. The training methods also addressed the expectations and levels of target teachers with suitable activities and involvement rather than mere lecturing. The workshop was conducted by master trainers specialising in various areas of training. It commenced with an inaugural address by Dr Mehmood ul Hassan Butt, Project Coordinator, HEDP.

He briefed the audience with his vision of quality higher education for all, including affiliated colleges that comparatively have been a weaker link in higher education in Pakistan. Dr Syed Afaq Husain, Consultant Capacity Building, briefed the audience about the workshop and hoped that the benefits of this training would reach the students. The training comprised the following modules: Transition to the Semester System by Dr Zeeshan Khattak; Teaching Methodologies and Academic Advisement by Dr Zahir J. Paracha; Student Assessment and Feedback by Dr Kashif S. Malik; Curriculum, Course Design, and Planning by Dr Saira Nudrat; Technology in Teaching and Learning by Dr Shehryar Naveed; and Environment and Sustainability by Engr Naeem Subhani, Safe T Consult. 64 teachers from 33 colleges across Islamabad, both urban and rural, attended the training, of whom 45 were female.