ISLAMABAD, Sept 8 (ABC): Uraan Pakistan-linked initiatives have trained around 160,000 youth and enrolled about 114,300 out-of-school children, reflecting progress in the government’s efforts to expand education and skills development.
According to documents available with Wealth Pakistan, around 160,000 youth have received training under different programmes of the Prime Minister’s Youth Skill Development Programme. The programme supports the government’s priority of promoting technical and vocational education and training.
Progress has also been made in bringing out-of-school children into the education system. Under the Enrolment, Retention and Progression of Out-of-School Children initiative, about 114,300 children have been enrolled in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT).
The government is also expanding the Daanish Schools network to ICT and lagging districts of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Sindh. The academic session at the Daanish School in ICT has already started, with 180 boys and 180 girls enrolled.
Meanwhile, work is underway to improve educational infrastructure in the federal capital. Authorities are renovating 152 educational institutions and adding 411 classrooms to existing schools under a programme to provide basic and missing facilities.
Two new colleges are also being added in ICT under the Federal Directorate of Education.
Early childhood education is another area receiving attention. So far, 100 Early Childhood Education (ECE) centres have been established in existing educational institutions, enrolling around 5,500 children.
Teacher training initiatives are also being strengthened through the National Institute of Excellence in Teacher’s Education. A Continuous Professional Development (CPD) centre has been established with 55 coaches, 12 RMs, one programme manager and support staff.
In addition, the initiative has registered 95% of primary and secondary schoolteachers on a digital platform. A three-level induction and in-service certification programme, verified by AKU, has also been developed. A training development studio has been established to further support professional development.
Technology is also becoming part of classroom teaching through the Rumi app. The documents describe it as an all-in-one solution designed according to teachers’ needs and class sizes. It provides real-time classroom observation and feedback in six languages.
A Digital Hub-Connected Classroom YouTube channel has also been established to support digital learning. In addition, state-of-the-art Google labs, computer labs and science labs are planned under the Daanish Schools initiative.
The education initiatives also include a Centre of Excellence for Autism Children at H-8/4, Islamabad. The government is developing the facility to provide specialised support for children with autism.
Overall, the Uraan Pakistan-linked initiatives cover several areas of human capital development, ranging from youth skills and school enrolment to teacher training, educational infrastructure and technology-enabled learning.
