Presented by Dr. Syed Kamaluddin Deputy Focal Person Government of Balochistan

1. Policy and Right to Education (RTE): Status on Early Childhoods Education in Balochistan Presented by Dr. Syed Kamaluddin Deputy Focal Person Government of Balochistan Policy Planning & Implementation Unit (PPIU) (September 16, 2014)

2. Overview • Prelude • ECE progress in Balochistan • Performance assessment framework • Targets set under BESPP • ECE budget in PSDP • Collaboration of donors • Policy legislative & other reforms • Way forward

3. Prelude • Pakistan education system strands at a critical juncture with constitution decree of Article 25-A declaring education as fundamental right for children of 5-16 yrs of age. • In addition to its own constitutions, Pakistan is also inevitable by international commitments and treaties. • The UN convention on Rights to Child (CRC), which is most extensive international treaty on rights of children, commits states to ensuring the rights of all children on basis of equal opportunity • The UN committee on CRC calls on states to recognize that children are active participants in decisions them and to pay special attention to the neglected area of early childhood. • The Jomtien Declaration for EFA stated that learning starts at birth. • The Dakar framework for action reaffirmed this and 180 world leaders signed up to EFA goals where goal 1 illustrates that” “Expanding and improving comprehensive early childhood care and education, especially for the most vulnerable disadvantaged children”.

4. Prelude • In pursuance of the Dakar World Education Forum, the Government of Pakistan developed a National Plan of Action 2001-15. This plan aimed at development of education sector as a whole with a special focus on EFA goals with ECE as one of its three areas of focus; • One of the salient features of National Education Policy 2009 stated that: “ECE shall be based on a concept of holistic development of the child; age group shall be recognized as comprising 3 to 5 years, at least one year pre-primary education shall be provided by the State; ECE shall be attached to primary schools provided with additional budget; teachers and assistants for this purpose; and, for ECE teachers, a two-year specialized training shall be a necessary requirement based on ECE revised National Curriculum” • In order to introduce ECE, a national curriculum for ECE was developed in the year 2002 revised in 2007. • The Higher Education Commission has developed curriculum for the elementary school teacher (ADE Programme) which also caters the professional needs of ECE teachers. • Federal Ministry of Education has developed the Early learning and Development standards

5. ECE significance • The criticality and advantages of ECE are now established from biological ,social, economic, cultural and human development standpoints. • Study have demonstrated the efficacy ECE in improving access especially for the most disadvantage evidence from around the world suggest that the most disadvantaged children whether because of poverty, ethnicity, gender, rural isolation or disability, experience the most dramatic gains from ECE. • The India village pre-school study, for example, found that the children who had participated in an ECE program were twice as likely to enroll in school as matched controls. • In Nepal more than 95% of program children enrolled compared to an overall figure of less than 70%. The results are even more dramatic, with very little dropout amongst the children who have participated in a pre-school program. :

6. ECE significance • Significant reductions in school failure, repetition, absenteeism and dropout rates were found in the vast majority of the studies looking at the effects of ECE worldwide. • The Mingat and Jaramillo studied impacts of Early Childhood Care and Education in Sub-Saharan Africa and found completion rates of 50% in the absence of pre-school and around 80% where half the children have access to pre-school or ECCD centers. • In Peru, a recent study found that nearly 60% more poor children who participated in pre-school completed primary school as compared with poor children who didn’t access pre-school. (Reference: AKF report on ECE) :

7. Total number of schools & enrollment in Balochistan

8. Performance assessment framework Currently, it is a Katchi class with limited concept of ECE, material and even no classroom and teachers for this age group

9. Performance assessment framework

10. Performance assessment framework

11. Comparative student competencies (ASER 2013)

12. ECE progress in Balochistan Schools with ECE facilities only 5%

13. Targets set under Balochistan Education Sector Plan (BESP)

14. Balochistan budget 2014-15

15. Collaboration of donors in Balochistan

16. Collaboration of donors in Balochistan

17. Proposed assessment methods on Early Childhood Education • 1. Classroom Level • Child Assessment • Teachers Assessment • Classroom Environment • Head Teachers • 2. Parental • Support • Involvement • Level of understanding • Sharing of Child Development • Reports • Health • Academic • 3. Health • Growth • Weight • Immunization • Medical checkups • 4. System Diagnosis • (through proposed Balochistan Examination & Assessment Commission- BEAC)

18. Policy, legislative & other reforms • Declared ‘Education Emergency’ in the province • Act (Article 25-A) on Free and Compulsory Education is promulgated • Act on Introduction of Mother Language in early grades is promulgated • Future teachers selection through National Testing Service (NTS) notified & MOU also signed with NTS • Developed ECE policy framework in collaboration with AKF • Planned continuous professional development (CPD) of teachers and head teachers at all levels • Development of new textbooks aligned with national curriculum 2006 student learning outcomes (SLO’s)

19. Way forward • Government of Balochistan Commitments to expand the ECE from 5% to all schools in phase wise manner • The CPD and pre-Service trainings needs to be aligned with the concept of ECE • Availability of teaching-learning resource material (TLR) especially for ECE and primary level to make the teaching-learning processes more attractive • Construction design of the schools need to be reviewed and aligned with the needs of the child • Approval and implementation of ECE policy frame work from Balochistan Cabinet

20. <kamalshahppiu@gmail.com> Thank you