[lg policy] Pakistan: BNU holds conference on education, language, educational management

[Harold Schiffman]

BNU holds conference on education, language, educational management

<http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/05/03/city/lahore/we-are-ready-to-counter-economic-challenges-nawaz/><http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/05/03/city/lahore/ahmadis-should-cast-votes-as-other-non-muslims-puc/>
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Beaconhouse National University (BNU) Board of Governors Chairperson
Nasreen Mahmud Kasuri on Thursday expressed the need to have forums to
discuss sensitive issues pertaining to language policy in education.

Mrs Kasuri was chairing the plenary session of a one-day international
conference organised by the BNU School of Education (SE). The themes of the
conference were “Education, Language and Educational Management.” The
conference was a part of BNU’s 10th anniversary celebrations.

Mrs Kasuri expressed the need to train teachers in the latest approaches
and methodologies to ensure quality teaching. She said “It is alarming how
the dilemma of untrained teachers in the classroom can be damaging to the
students.” She acknowledged the role of BNU SE in training teachers at
different levels of education. She also stressed the need to address the
issue of the role and status of local languages and mother tongue in
education.

BNU Vice Chancellor Sartaj Aziz highlighted the need to focus on the issue
of education in Pakistan. He said that higher funds were only one of the
four pre-requisites for the transformation of the education system in
Pakistan. The other three being well trained teachers, an objective and
professional institutional framework for educational management and
incentives for learning and scientific research.

He said there was a positive relationship between mother tongue and
educational achievement; therefore, it was important for improving literacy
rate in the country that all the major languages be given the status of
national languages in Pakistan.

SE Dean Dr Tariq Rahman talked about the important role conferences play in
academia in sharing ground breaking research findings and furthering novel
research ideas.

Lahore College for Women University Vice Chancellor Dr Sabiha Mansoor
stressed the impact of languages on education policy of a country. She
reiterated the role of mother tongue in strengthening the ethno-linguistic
identity of its speakers as well as improving educational achievement.

In the session on the theme of “Language”, Lahore School of Economics
Department of Social Sciences Head Dr Shahid Siddiqui highlighted the role
language plays in developing gender stereotypes. In his talk he also
suggested that the educational institutions can play a vital role in
eliminating these stereotypes from the society.

In the session on “Education”, Society for the Advancement of Education
(SAHE) Executive Director Abbas Rashid and SAHE Director Dr Fareeha Zafar
emphasised on a language policy that promoted the use of local languages as
a medium of instruction.

University of Pennsylvania doctoral candidate Murium Durrani suggested that
policy of compulsory English in public sector schools, instead of
democratising education might increase illiteracy.



In the session on “Educational Management”, University of London Royal
Holloway doctoral candidate Sumaira Noreen gave a historical perspective of
the way in which education has been managed in South Asia.

FC College University Centre for Learning and Teaching Director Dr Rukhsana
Zia gave an insider’s perspective on the process of bringing about policy
reforms in education in Pakistan.

LUMS Department of Law and Policy Associate Professor Dr Osama Siddique
summed up the session by stressing on the need for a constructive
educational policy where the government and other stake holders join hands
to bring about the much needed reforms in the education sector in Pakistan.

The conference was attended by prominent academics, experts, educationists
and a large number of students.
- See more at:
http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2013/05/03/city/lahore/bnu-holds-conference-on-education-language-educational-management/#sthash.kDcb66oi.dpuf


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