By: Naveed Ahmed
The statistics of Primary Education in Pakistan shows a gross enrollment rate of 70%, with 50% of these children dropping out before reaching the fifth class. Out of these 35% survivors, only one third meet the minimum quality standard that is expected of a child passing primary education. This comes to only 11% of the total target population.
“To ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling and that girls and boys will have equal access to all levels of education.”
A child getting a chance to express her potential at an NCHD Feeder School
The NCHD's UPE program targets the Out-of-school children, by carrying out data collection of each and every household through door to door survey, with the help of village volunteers and teachers of schools, thus ensuring wider community participation through broad based community meetings. Once the list of out of school children are prepared form the data collected, names of out-of-school children are handed over to the village volunteers for visiting the homes of out-of-school children, for motivating the parents for in time enrollment, and ensuring their enrollment in nearest schools. Where there are no schools within commuting distance, NCHD opened formal community primary based schools, and thus ensured access to schooling. In formal schools, where the number of students increased because of intensive enrollment campaign, NCHD provided additional teachers to cater for the learning needs of new students. A system of dropout prevention was devised, which hinged upon private-public partnership; the teacher and the community volunteers followed up a persuasion strategy, following up on students absent without intimation.
The UPE program is implemented through the public sector institutions. The strategy for UPE remains capacity building of the District Education Department through demonstration and on-job training. For providing support to the Education Department, a field team is made responsible for social mobilization for enrollment and dropout prevention, and is attached with the Education Department for the capacity building of the Education Department. These field tiers also carry intensive monitoring of the activities, and also build the capacity of the Education Department for effective monitoring. The over riding concern remains provision of quality education, which is affected through rigorous teachers training and intensive monitoring of learning achievements of the students.
“To ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling and that girls and boys will have equal access to all levels of education.”
A child getting a chance to express her potential at an NCHD Feeder School
The NCHD's UPE program targets the Out-of-school children, by carrying out data collection of each and every household through door to door survey, with the help of village volunteers and teachers of schools, thus ensuring wider community participation through broad based community meetings. Once the list of out of school children are prepared form the data collected, names of out-of-school children are handed over to the village volunteers for visiting the homes of out-of-school children, for motivating the parents for in time enrollment, and ensuring their enrollment in nearest schools. Where there are no schools within commuting distance, NCHD opened formal community primary based schools, and thus ensured access to schooling. In formal schools, where the number of students increased because of intensive enrollment campaign, NCHD provided additional teachers to cater for the learning needs of new students. A system of dropout prevention was devised, which hinged upon private-public partnership; the teacher and the community volunteers followed up a persuasion strategy, following up on students absent without intimation.
The UPE program is implemented through the public sector institutions. The strategy for UPE remains capacity building of the District Education Department through demonstration and on-job training. For providing support to the Education Department, a field team is made responsible for social mobilization for enrollment and dropout prevention, and is attached with the Education Department for the capacity building of the Education Department. These field tiers also carry intensive monitoring of the activities, and also build the capacity of the Education Department for effective monitoring. The over riding concern remains provision of quality education, which is affected through rigorous teachers training and intensive monitoring of learning achievements of the students.
