Assignment # 02 Submitted by: Adeela Saleem Course name: Secondary education Course code: 827 Program: M. Ed Semester: Autumn 2022 Date of submission: 25 Feb 2023 Q. No. 1 Discuss the training programs for secondary school teachers in Pakistan? The teaching profession, by and large, does not attract the best talent in Pakistan. Those considered bright either join the professions such as medicine and engineering and try to migrate to the West or are attracted by higher-level civil service positions, which open avenues for enormous graft and corruption. A few exceptions would be some highly respected university faculty and those scientists working at the highest levels of the country's research establishment, especially those involved in missile and nuclear technology. Among the reasons for the reluctance to join the teaching profession at the primary and secondary levels are relatively low salaries, unattractive working conditions, and the high teacher-student ratio, which is around 1:40 at the primary and 1:36 at the secondary level. In the early 1990s there were 87 elementary teacher-training institutions offering a one-year program leading to the Primary Teaching Certificate (PTC) for teachers in grades one to five or the Certificate of Teaching (CT) for teachers in grades six to eight. While the PTC course needs 10 years of education for admission to it, the CT course requires 12 years and an FA/FSC certificate. The AL lama Iqbal Open University also offers distance education courses for its PTC and CT programs. There are three types of programs for training of teachers in Pakistan. The first is the one-year primary school teacher-training program in basic subjects and methods of teaching, including child psychology. The secondary school teachers are required to join one of the numerous teachers' training colleges or a university department of education either for a one-year program leading to the Bachelor of Education diploma or a three-year program leading to a Bachelor of Education degree. The admission to either program requires a bachelor's or master's degree in any discipline from any university. The higher-level work leading to degrees in education at the master's or the doctorate level is done in the departments of education in the universities, which produce specialists as well as academic administrators. There are also several in-service training programs for "untrained" teachers or for upgrading the curriculum. Teachers sent to such programs are nominated by the school principals and approved by the district officer and generally receive full salary during the in-service training. Science and technical teaching has been given special emphasis by the federal government. Thus, Islamabad's Institute for the Promotion of Science Education and Training (IPSET) and National Technical Teachers Training College (NTTTC) have been doing excellent work in upgrading the knowledge base of secondary school and junior college science teachers as well as instructors in technology colleges and polytechnics. For educational administrators there is the Academy of Educational Planning and Management (AEPAM) at Islamabad, providing courses and in-service training for school and college principals, district education officers, and regional directors. There are few facilities in Pakistan for special education. The first to start courses leading to a master's degree in special education were the University of Karachi, the National Institute for the Handicapped at the University of Islamabad (NIHUS), and the AL lama Iqbal Open University. With the establishment of the office of Director-General of Special Education within the Ministry of Health, Social Welfare, and Special Education in 1985, special education attracted a national focus. In 1989 NIHUS received a major boost with the opening of 45 centers for special education with a combined enrollment of 3,500. Additionally, a National Training Center for the Disabled and a national Mobility and Independence Training Center for producing teachers in special education were established in Islamabad. Most of these projects were made possible with funds, overseas training, and technical guidance from WHO, UNICEF, UNESCO, and UNDP. Programs were instituted for training fellowships abroad as well as for visits by experts from Europe and the United States. Q. No. 2 Write a note on teacher education programs in Pakistan? The teaching profession, by and large, does not attract the best talent in Pakistan. Those considered bright either join the professions such as medicine and engineering and try to migrate to the West or are attracted by higher-level civil service positions, which open avenues for enormous graft and corruption. A few exceptions would be some highly respected university faculty and those scientists working at the highest levels of the country's research establishment, especially those involved in missile and nuclear technology. Among the reasons for the reluctance to join the teaching profession at the primary and secondary levels are relatively low salaries, unattractive working conditions, and the high teacher-student ratio, which is around 1:40 at the primary and 1:36 at the secondary level. In the early 1990s there were 87 elementary teacher-training institutions offering a one-year program leading to the Primary Teaching Certificate (PTC) for teachers in grades one to five or the Certificate of Teaching (CT) for teachers in grades six to eight. While the PTC course needs 10 years of education for admission to it, the CT course requires 12 years and an FA/FSC certificate. The AL lama Iqbal Open University also offers distance education courses for its PTC and CT programs. There are three types of programs for training of teachers in Pakistan. The first is the one-year primary school teacher-training program in basic subjects and methods of teaching, including child psychology. The secondary school teachers are required to join one of the numerous teachers' training colleges or a university department of education either for a one-year program leading to the Bachelor of Education diploma or a three-year program leading to a Bachelor of Education degree. The admission to either program requires a bachelor's or master's degree in any discipline from any university. The higher-level work leading to degrees in education at the master's or the doctorate level is done in the departments of education in the universities, which produce specialists as well as academic administrators. There are also several in-service training programs for "untrained" teachers or for upgrading the curriculum. Teachers sent to such programs are nominated by the school principals and approved by the district officer and generally receive full salary during the in-service training. Science and technical teaching has been given special emphasis by the federal government. Thus, Islamabad's Institute for the Promotion of Science Education and Training (IPSET) and National Technical Teachers Training College (NTTTC) have been doing excellent work in upgrading the knowledge base of secondary school and junior college science teachers as well as instructors in technology colleges and polytechnics. For educational administrators there is the Academy of Educational Planning and Management (AEPAM) at Islamabad, providing courses and in-service training for school and college principals, district education officers, and regional directors. There are few facilities in Pakistan for special education. The first to start courses leading to a master's degree in special education were the University of Karachi, the National Institute for the Handicapped at the University of Islamabad (NIHUS), and the AL lama Iqbal Open University. With the establishment of the office of Director-General of Special Education within the Ministry of Health, Social Welfare, and Special Education in 1985, special education attracted a national focus. In 1989 NIHUS received a major boost with the opening of 45 centers for special education with a combined enrollment of 3,500. Additionally, a National Training Center for the Disabled and a national Mobility and Independence Training Center for producing teachers in special education were established in Islamabad. Most of these projects were made possible with funds, overseas training, and technical guidance from WHO, UNICEF, UNESCO, and UNDP. Programs were instituted for training fellowships abroad as well as for visits by experts from Europe and the United States. Q. No. 3 What are the crises of education in Pakistan? Write in detail? “Education is a matter of life and death for Pakistan. The world is progressing so rapidly that without requisite advance in education, not only shall we lag behind others but maybe wiped out altogether.” The education section of the executive summary of the Economic Survey of Pakistan 2021-22 notes: “Pakistan is committed to transform its education system into a high-quality global-market demanddriven system in accordance with Goal 4 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).” However, the reality is vastly different. The literacy rate in Pakistan in 2021 was only 62.8%. Any gains in literacy rates over the last many years have been small, slow and marginal. In 2021-22, we spent only 1.77% of GDP on education-related expenditure at both the federal and provincial levels. Most UN agencies recommend that the minimum expenditure on education should be 4% of GDP. In recent years, the highest percentage of GDP we have spent on education was in 2017-18, when education expenditures were raised to 2.12%. The usual argument given for lack of spending on education has always been and still is that we do not have the resources. In Pakistan, the current literacy rate is 62.3%. In Budget 1.7% of GDP has been allocated as Education Budget which is lowest in the region. The expenditure of 74,609 billion has been allocated for Tertiary Education Affairs & Services in budget 2022-23; 3,786 billion for pre-primary & primary education; 8,863 billion for Secondary Education Affairs and Rs2 billion for administration. 44,174 billion has been earmarked for Higher Education Commission (HEC) under the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) for the year 2022-23. (Business Recorder June 11, 2022). According to data from the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness has Report 2017-18, the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) shows Pakistan’s slow performance being ranked 129th of the 137 countries, on the Health and Primary Education related elements of competitiveness, when compared with other countries in the region like India, China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Malaysia. The structure of school education system in the public sector is depicted in Fig. below. Figure Above: The structure of school education system in Pakistan (Pre-Primary to Higher Secondary) Education system creates sense of responsibility among people and they come to know the methods to achieve their national, societal and personal rights and it also enhances their general consciousness needed to deliver their duties as citizens towards their Nation. Once the realization originates, people start working for the development and prosperity of their motherland in the atmosphere of trust and co-operation. The polarization and non – unified education system has resulted into outraged political turmoil, deadly terrorism, incessant sectorial violence, social disruption, economic instability and degeneration of government system. Whether it is poverty, non-availability of jobs, security uncertainty, sectarianism or terrorism, lack of tolerance, lack of general awareness, illiteracy, all are off shoots of the poor, inefficient and ineffective education system. The lowest budget allocation, a realm of large number of ineffective education policies has badly failed to take country out of economic, social, political and development quagmire. Education has fundamental role in the economic, social, political and structural development of any nation. Many of the economic issues like poverty, overpopulation, unemployment, resource mobilization, inflation, exchange rate drastic fluctuation, housing, infrastructure, and health can be reduced and handled by improving education system in Pakistan. Education can also solve social issues like Bara Dari system, Waders Culture, Chaudhary regime and slave mentality. The political issues like battle for power by different politicians, lawlessness, fraud, corruption, religious riots, extremism, processions to gain popularity, use of indecent remarks, no public service, no human investment to save the lives of ignorant and deprived humans. Structural Development like transition from primitive methodologies to modern strategies; Shifts from Agriculture to Industry, hand made tools to mechanization, from physical conventional education system to Online Education and adoption of highly sophisticated and up to the mark technology can only happen with the strong Education Policy and implementation of country’s education system. Pakistan, since its inception has failed to establish an education system which can fulfill the aspirations of the general public. Being a developing country, Pakistan is facing multifaceted problems and issues in the education sector. There are many issues prevalent and practiced in Pakistan’s Education System at all levels of Education – primary, secondary – colleges or universities. The educational institutions within the country are divided into following categories: (1) Pre-primary School (2) Primary School (3) Middle School (4) High School (5) Higher Secondary (6) Inter-colleges (7) Degree Colleges (8) Universities (9) Non-formal Basic Education (10) Education foundations (11) Technical & Vocational Institutions (12) Teacher Training Institutions (13) Deena Madras Pakistan’s schooling system consists of three main school types namely public sector schools, private sector schools and Deena Madras. These are further divided as public and private mainly due to curriculum and examination systems used in the schools and the language of instructions used by teachers. The Broad Categories on education level are: School Education (Pre-primary – Class 12) College Education (Degree Colleges Class 13-14) University Education The education system of Pakistan is comprised of 305,763 institutions accommodating 51,186,560 9 students and 2,073,433 teachers. The system is composed of 189,748 (62%) public institutions and 116,015 (38%) private institutions, which also include 31,115 Deena Madras. The public sector is serving 28.49 million (56%) students to complete their education while the remaining 22.70 million (44%) are enrolled in the private sector of education. About 38 percent private educational institutions are facilitating 44 percent of students showing a slightly higher per-institution enrolment ratio in the private sector compared to the public sector. There are a total of 186 universities & degree awarding institutions catering to the needs of higher degree students in both public and private sectors of education. Out of these universities, 111 (60%) are working under umbrella of public sector, whereas 75 (40%) are working in the private sector. The total enrolment in the universities and degree awarding institutions is 1.576 million. Out of these 1.266 million (80%) students are enrolled in public sector whereas, 0.309 million (20%) students are studying in private universities and degree awarding institutions. In the overall national scenario only four percent students have access to university education. The total male enrolment in the universities is 0.881 million (56%), whereas, the female enrolment is 0.695 million (44%) . There are 56,885 teachers imparting higher education to the students in these universities. Universities in the public sector employ 38,011 (67%) teachers while those in the private sector have 18,874 (33%) teachers. The significant issues of Education system are lack of Budget Allocation, lack of Policy Implementation, Faulty examination System, Poor Infra Structure of Educational Institutions, Lack of Teacher’s quality, low enrolment, Wayward and Directionless Education system, High scale drop outs, Increasing Political Interference, Out dated curriculum, corruption, Poor Management and Supervision, lack of Uniformity, lack of research, lack of faculty training and Development, Cost of Education, Terrorist Attacks, Cultural Constraints, lack of Parent input, Widening gap between Educational Institutions and Community, lack of Academia Industry Linkage program and Learning Crisis etc. Education is the nurturing and nourishing force for the construction of strong and impressive societal set up, prominent development and significant growth of the country. Education explores new dimensions and polishes the hidden talent, potential, capabilities and strengths of individuals and redirect these forces towards the rise of Pakistan as a powerful nation on the global horizon. Quaid-e-Adam Muhammad Ali Jinnah envisioned Education System of Pakistan as the driving force behind all the national goals. In the first National Education Conference held at Karachi. It was decided that Education System will work according to the National aspirations of Pakistan and it will be truly related to the needs of the people of Pakistan. The father of Nation said, “The magnificent goal of Education sector will be to develop character of Pakistan, high sense of responsibility, social integrity, selfless service to the Nation and morality on the part of the people of Pakistan. Critical analysis of the problems and issues of education system in Pakistan. These are the most dominant issues and problems of our Education System which needs to be addressed and to find remedial solutions for these issues and put forward recommendations for the positive change in our prevalent Education System. 1- Lack of uniformity The Education System is not Uniform and is based on differentiated Education System like Public Institutions, Private Institutions and Deena Madras. There has been accelerated polarization in the Education System due to divisive Pakistani Education System. This has penetrated into cultural veins of the Nation. The recent waves of Sectarianism and Terrorism are the consequences of this divisible system. Polarized Education System has further divided society on political, economic and social grounds instead of uniting people. This division is leading towards further segregation on linguistic and religious levels and cutting knee deep the ideological foundation of the Nation. 2- Education without direction A sound Education System is essential for every nation of the world. All nations develop their people or human resources on the basis of rigorous focus on Education and Training. We have poor and direction less education system with lack of cohesion and more prone towards general education without creation of Skillful man power resulting into massive unemployment. It also results into massive political, social, economic and cultural distress among people. There is no use of science and technology in the education system. Students are unable to develop critical thinking, creativity, imagination, reasoning, experimentation, innovation and invention 3- Outdated curriculum We are still following the old fashioned and outdated Education System of rote memorization, cramming the facts and figures without realizing the holistic development of individuals. The objective of Education should be development of psychological, philosophical and sociological foundations of Education. The present curriculum is not motivating learners for practical research and development, scientific knowledge and reflective observation. 4- Lack of professional development of teachers There are few training institutes but have lack of funds, lack of resourceful and trained trainers and administers. There are no defined standards of training and development. The courses and trainings are outdated, traditional without exposure to modern technology, motivation, quality of teachers and enhancement of skills. 5- Lack of quality teacher According to UNESCO report, the quality of educational institutions and teacher is low. The situation is grimmer in remote parts of Punjab, Sindh, Baluchistan where there is non availability of teachers. Teachers are not using new methods of teaching and learning, no lesson planning, old method of cramming, no research, no use of libraries or internet, no book reading. Students are promoted to next class on the basis of cramming and memorization of facts and figures without knowledge in depth, no conceptualization, no understanding of topics in the books without relevance in schools. 6- Alarming dropouts Lack of management and discipline in schools leads many students to drop out from school. This trend is due to punishment in schools, poor parenting, lack of motivation, unattractive school environment, child labor & poverty are also very significant reasons of huge drop out from schools, colleges and universities. It shows that almost 30% of children enrolled in primary education. This trend has added to low literacy rate in Pakistan. 7- Examination system Students are evaluated on the basis of annual exams, semester wise assessments. Both quantitative and qualitative exams should be introduced to judge the performance of students on comprehensive level and exams should evaluate the student’s ability through various types of reliable assessments like case studies, research papers, MCQs, Comprehensive subjective questions, Analytical questions to check the conceptual understanding of students especially in higher classes (Rahman, 2011). In Pakistan examination system is faulty and it tests only the memory of students, there is use of unfair means, bribery, cheating, issuance of duplicate marks sheets, changes of marks, change of answer sheets, impersonation. This present examination system has promoted rote memorization and cramming. It has badly failed in producing critical thinking, analytical skills, learning, intellectual power and visionary reflection in the students at all levels of education. It does not measure the strength, achievements and performance of students (Qureshi, 1975). Modular system of examination in Medical Universities is producing incompetent students with insufficient knowledge of Anatomy which is the backbone of medicine studies. In modular system a single paper for three subjects is given to students. Students prepare easy subjects to pass the exam and leave the difficult and important subject of Anatomy for choice. Therefore, this method has tarnished the strong foundations of learning and performing badly. Doctors produced with such type of examination with lack of proper understanding of subject will not be able to serve the humanity honestly and do the justice with their profession. In our education system educational institutions are used as breeding grounds for political parties and in colleges and universities these groups nurture. Students get benefits by being part of any political party during exams. A list of students is provided to the teacher by the student leader to pass them in the exam, admissions are given on the party basis, exams are marked and checked on party basis because mostly teachers are also working for parties while sitting in educational institutions. During Board or University exam by giving money to the invigilator, students are allowed to cheat in the exam, Students throw question paper outside the window and one of the party rep climbs up the tree near the window with Megaphone and starts dictating answers by calling up question numbers. Honest Teachers are threatened and sometimes gunned and killed in case they are not willing to listen to the unfair demands of the students of different parties. Some of the teachers are also involved in malpractices. They leak the paper by charging handsome amounts or solve the papers for students or allow students to solve the papers by cheating from books, material or from some good student. In board exams, before submission of sheets to the board office representative student is asked to write down correct answers. Teachers are themselves involved in such political activities and award “F” grade to students who are not in their party. In Russia there is no exam system like ours. Students study through out the year and at the end of year teacher can ask any question from the book to pass the candidate and check his understanding & knowledge of the subject. 8- Poor supervision standards To monitor teaching and learning, poor and harsh standards of evaluation and punishment are used which in some case leads to termination of jobs. At primary school level teacher’s evaluation is not possible. Secondary Schools/Cambridge Schools are evaluated through Board exam results/CAIE results. In college, again Board or University exam results are the criteria to judge the academic performance of Student and Teacher’s teaching. Whereas, actually there is an increase in tuitions instead of relying on School or College teaching. Students and their parents are compelled to go for tuitions due pressure of good grades and admissions in good educational institutions. There are many tuition centers, coaching centers, academies where the same teachers who were unable to impart quality education give quality tuitions by charging heavy amounts and prepare students well to score good grades. The low salaries demotivate them in their institutions to impart good education. In Universities students are given power to evaluate teaching and their grading becomes part of an Annual Evaluation Report which is essential for promotion or benefit of the faculty. This system is again polluted by involvement of computer department staff, Student coordinators and by bribing students to give bad remarks about any teacher. Some insincere and corrupt teachers mark students’ attendance and give them good marks, tell them questions of exams and do immoral activities to get good evaluation from students. Teachers who are honest and hard working are ranked low by students. Even at higher education institutions there is lobbying and politics through which false evaluation against any faculty can be prepared to get rid of the unwanted faculty by the management. So, in short, supervision system is more prone to harassment and control over the teaching staff rather than providing proper guideline and training for the improvement of teaching methodologies & strategies. (Rahman, 2011). 9- Internal and external influence In Education sector external factors are coming outside the system through politicians and they bring changes in the system to give favor to their families, relatives, friends etc. Internal factors are bureaucratic manipulations (Masher, 2011). There is great favoritism and Nepotism in cases of transfers, Appointments, Promotions, Salaries, Grades & Work Stations. Due to this the basic Infrastructure of the Education System in Pakistan has been badly affected (LOUIS, 1987). 10- Lack of resources There are not proper Libraries with physical space for Students to Study. Books are not available, No digital libraries, no computer Facility in the library especially in public sector colleges & universities. No proper lighting, no AC, no Generators in case of power break down are available to make studies more comfortable for the desirous and ambitious students. Class rooms are over-crowded, corridors are flooded with students, Inadequate and Inefficient teachers, Laboratories without required apparatus & equipment of practical learning have resulted into a situation of despair and low standard of Education (Louis, 1987). Q. No. 4 What measures were taken to achieve the objectives of education policy 1972-80? Since independence in 1947, a variety of documents were developed on National Education Policies as guidelines on access, quality and governance in education sector of Pakistan; • National Education Conference (1947) • National Education Commission Report (1959) • The Education Policy (1972) • National Education Policy (1979) • National Education Policy (1992) • National Education Policy (1998-2010) • National Education Policy (2009) • Draft National Education Policy (2017) Salient Features of the Education Policy (1979) The primary objective of this policy was to “Islamize” education in Pakistan, and to develop a curriculum more suited to national aspirations and a minimum level of literacy was to be ensured. The elitist, twotiered system of education was to be eradicated by directing government sponsored English medium schools to adopt Urdu as a medium of education. Thus, the unfair advantage the students of English medium schools had in the job market to be eliminated. Another significant decision in the policy was the recognition of Madrassa, or Mosque school, as an educational institution per se. Salient Features of the Education Policy (1992) The Education Policy 1992 was focused on the following; 1. Achieving universal primary education, eliminating drop-out rates, and fulfilling the basic learning needs by the year 2002. 2. Encouraging involvement of the private sector for participation in the education system. 3. Stressing women’s education. 4. Raising the quality of an extensive in-service teachers’ training program. 5. Diversification of vocational streams along with expansion of graduate and postgraduate level courses. 6. Reforming of examination system. 7. Introducing computer education at school level. 8. Encouraging community participation in educational affairs. Salient Features of the National Education Policy (1998) The main features of the Education Policy (1998-2010) are as under; 1. Every child of six to twelve year age group will be in a school within five years. 2. class at primary level shall be introduced as part of the effort to improve the achievement of pupils. 3. Access to elementary education shall be increased, through effective aid optimum utilization of existing facilities and services, as well as provision of new facilities and services. 4. Improving the quality, access and efficiency of elementary education. 5. Strengthening, governance, management/planning, supervision, monitoring & evaluation. 6. Ensuring financial sustainability of elementary education and also to build institutional capacity. Salient Features of the National Education Policy (2009) The policy document identifies policy actions in pursuit of two overarching objectives: • Widening access to education; and • Improving quality It also speaks about the two important gaps: • Commitment and • Implementation. Key Policy Actions identified are as follows: 1. Provinces and Area Governments shall affirm the goal of achieving universal and free primary education by 2015 and up to class 10 by 2025. 2. Provincial and Area Governments shall develop plans for achieving these targets, including intermediate enrolment targets and estimates of the required financial, technical, human and organizational resources. 3. The plans shall also promote equity in education with the aim of eliminating social exclusion and promoting national cohesion. Greater opportunities shall be provided to marginalized groups of society, particularly girls. 4. To achieve the commitments of Government of Pakistan towards Education for All (EFA) and the MDGs, inclusive and child-friendly education shall be promoted. 5. Special measures shall be adopted to ensure inclusion of special persons in mainstream education as well as in literacy and Technical and Vocational Education (TVE) programs. 6. Governments shall improve provision of quality educational at all levels. 7. National Standards for educational inputs, processes and outputs shall be determined. A National Authority for Standards of Education shall be established. The standards shall not debar a provincial and area government/organization from having its own standards higher than the minimum prescribed standards. 8. Provincial Governments and district authorities shall establish monitoring and inspection systems to ensure quality education and service delivery in all institutions. 9. Steps shall be taken to make provision of education relevant to the employability in market and for promoting innovation in the economy. 10. Universities and research institutes shall place greater emphasis on mobilizing research for promoting innovation in the economy. The National Education Policy (2009) NPA to Accelerate Education-Related MDGs, National Plan of Action Pakistan (2013-16). 11. Educational inputs need to be designed with comprehension of the challenges and opportunities related to globalization. Strategies shall be developed to optimize opportunities and minimize the potential negative impacts. Salient Features of Draft National Education Policy, 2017 Following the salient features of the draft National Education Policy; 1. Provide free and compulsory education up to Matric in compliance with the provisions of Article 25 (A) of the Constitution. 2. Meeting the learning needs of the child which include learning tools (literacy, numeracy, problem solving and oral expression) and learning contents (knowledge, skills, value and attitude). 3. Honor national and international commitments in education and literacy. 4. Promote culture of research and innovation. 5. Increase investment in education to 4% of GDP. 6. Expand, strengthen and promote universal, comprehensive Early Childhood Education with an objective to ensure holistic development of child to prepare for formal schooling. 7. Achieve universal quality primary education covering all the three dimensions/ aspects of universalization i.e. universal access/enrolment; universal retention; and universal achievement by 2020. 8. Expand and strengthen the facilities and services for middle and secondary level education by upgrading more primary schools to middle and secondary level. 9. Expand and extend the existing non-formal basic education program to middle level (VI-VIII). 10. Achieve the target of literate Pakistan through launching the country wide campaign of literacy for all and through all. 11. Re-introduce the quality technical and vocational education stream in selected schools at secondary and higher secondary school level to comply with national TEVTA standards. 12. Establish trade schools at sub-district and district level. 13. Encourage, facilitate quality private sector education. 14. time. Achieve gender parity, gender equality and empower women and girls within shortest possible 15. Improve the quality of education by introducing reforms of new initiatives in curriculum formulation, textbook and instructional materials development, teacher training, examination and assessment and monitoring and supervision. 16. Recruit competent, capable and committed scholar-teachers purely on merit basis at all level of education. 17. Develop and implement National Curriculum Framework and National Standards for each subject from Grade 1-12. 18. Institutionalize new curriculum formulation, textbook development and review process in the light of 18th Amendment in consultation with National Curriculum Council. 19. Promote regulated and monitored Public-Private Partnership for educational development. 20. Improve coordination at local, district, provincial, national and international levels in education and literacy especially to achieve national and international commitments such as SDGs. 21. Increase the investment in education by increasing the allocation, simplifying the procedures of releases and expenditure and improving the absorptive capacity of the system. 22. Professional finance staff to be hired at the district levels to monitor the effective, timely utilization of funds according to the plans for increasing access upgrading the facilities and hiring of teachers on merit. 23. Support to Deena Madras to utilize their services for promotion of adult literacy and non-formal basic education. 24. Suggest effective mechanisms for implementation of education policy provisions. Educational administrators at Federal and Provincial levels to be held accountable for failure in timely implementation of policies and plans. Q. No. 5 Make a comparison between annual and semester system of examination system? Examination is the integral part of teaching learning process in schools and is one of the key components of curriculum as well. It is divided into annual and semester system and the former examination system has been practicing in government schools across the country in general and in Gigot-Baltistan in particular. Though, both systems carry benefits and pitfalls but semester examination system carries more benefits than annual examination. According to a comparative study carried out in Government Colleges of Management sciences Peshawar by Aswan Yard Yousef in which many students from a given population were interviewed to give opinion in favor or against the aforesaid system with arguments and reasons. After analyzing the data more than 75% respondents of the total population in the research have opinionated in favour of semester exam system due to the following reasons. Through semester system students are continuously assessed and it is better for concentration and learning. While under annual system, examination held at the end of each session /year, therefore most of students does overburden academically. In semester system, examination held at the end of each semester, as course outlines divided into semesters, therefore students prepare and perform better and obtain better marks. On the other hand, under annual system, children mostly start preparation for annual exam towards the end of the academic year which produces less impact with low marks and at times failures in the annual exam. However, semester system is costly as compared to annual exam, but it is important to give priority to learning, rather than capital, therefore, the data analyzed above reveal and suggest to opt for semester system examination. Therefore, annual exam should be replaced with semester system in government schools across country. Nevertheless, the Directorate of Education Gilgit-Baltistan finally decided to go for semester system exam this year in Gilgit region comprising District Gilgit, Ghizer, Hunza, Nagar, Diamer and Astor. In this connection, course outlines were also provided to each school from infant to 8th class. 1st term exam comprising 50% marks will commence from 3rd September 2016 while final term exam will be conducted on 6 the December 2016. Hence, new academic session will be started from 11th Feb 2017 and this routine will continue in future. In short, unlike annual exam system planning and working pattern are different for students as they have to curtail their leisure time particularly summer vacation and focus half of their course intensively in order to appear in 1st quarter graded exam on 3rd September with full preparation. Teachers should also prepare themselves to leave no stone unturned in delivering effective classroom practices and guide students in accordance with examination pattern. And finally, parents should get aware of the newly changed examination schedule and support and supervise their children accordingly.