AKU’s Institute for Educational Development Pakistan​ (IED) celebrated its 25th year of raising standards in Pakistan’s education system through a series of education seminars that brought together alumni, government officials and education experts from across the country.

Two of the seminars took place at IED’s Professional Development Centres (PDCs) in Gilgit Baltistan and Chitral and highlighted how IED has educated more than 36,000 teachers, teacher educators, school leaders, education managers and researchers in Pakistan since 1993, while also supporting high quality research and school improvement practices in the field.

In his welcome address, Dr Sarfaroz Niyozov, AKU-IED director, spoke about the philosophy that has guided the institute for all these years.

“Since its inception, the institute has used an integrated approach where capacity building of education professionals and institutions, research and educational development activities go hand in hand to improve the quality of education for children in schools across Pakistan,” he said.

Speaking about IED’s impact, Dr Moladad Shafa, head of the PDCs, mentioned that the centres in both regions were the first of their kind. He said that the PDCs have enhanced access and equity, improved the quality of education in areas where teachers have limited opportunities to further their education. The centres have also equipped schools with resources to improve their performance.

Over 20,000 education professionals have benefited from the non-degree field-based professional development opportunities offered by both PDCs, he noted.

Dr Inayatullah Faizi, a renowned columnist and social scientist from Chitral, during the seminar in Chitral said that “AKU is the leader in introducing reforms and its best practices have been adopted by other educational institutions in Pakistan.”

Gilgit-Baltistan’s Chief Secretary Dr Kazim Niaz also recognised IED’s impact on the people of the region.

“I have learned with pride that a significant number of AKU-IED graduates come from Gilgit-Baltistan who contribute to the cause of education in different capacities, which is making a significant impact on the socioeconomic status of their families and communities,” he said. “The government of Gilgit-Baltistan deeply commends AKU-IED endeavours to produce quality human resources direly needed to accelerate the socioeconomic development processes in our area.”

With the support of donor agencies, IED’s PDCs have worked with government bodies to mobilise communities to help the cause of education. The Whole School Improvement Programme and School Improvement in Multi-grade Situations by the PDCs have benefited a large number of government, community-based and not-for-profit schools.

Currently, both centres are implementing a School improvement Programme, commissioned by the Aga Khan Foundation, in 120 schools in under-served valleys of Chitral and Gilgit, which is helping over 12,000 students. The centre in GB is also leading the Girls’ Right to Education Project, funded by UNESCO, to develop a conducive environment for girls in 34 public sector schools.

Research has remained an integral part of all the academic and developmental work of IED. More than 150 research projects, completed by the IED and its PDCs, have helped in improving the curriculum, teaching, learning and management practices in their beneficiary schools.

Some of these projects have also provided insights for policy and strategy formulation at the highest levels. A few examples are the National Education Policy 2009, the Gilgit-Baltistan Education Strategy and the monitoring framework for the teachers of public sector schools in GB.

The overall contribution of the IED has widely been acknowledged by international development agencies as well as independent external evaluation bodies. In 2006, the European Commission monitoring team stated: “AKU-IED has reached a high degree of maturity and functions in a way which matches the practices of other established institutions in Europe and elsewhere … it is now well established as a national resource for increased educational quality, effectiveness, relevance and outreach.”