SHAH ABDUL LATIF UNIVERSITY

KHAIRPUR

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
ASSIGNMENT

Role of (RSU) Reform Support Unit in

Teachers Professional Development.

NAME

FAHMEEDA BANO
ROLL NO. 114

Role of (RSU) Reform Support Unit in

Teachers Professional Development.

INTRODUCTION

Professional development refers to many types of educational experiences related to an

individuals work. In education, research has shown that teaching quality and school leadership
are the most important factors in raising student achievement. Effective professional
development enables educators to develop the knowledge and skills they need to address
students learning challenges. To be effective, professional development requires thoughtful
planning followed by careful implementation with feedback to ensure it responds to educators
learning needs. Educators who participate in professional development then must put their new
knowledge and skills to work. Professional development is not effective unless it causes teachers
to improve their instruction or causes administrators to become better school leaders. For the
achievement of this purpose and tracking the nation on right path to compete the modern world.
For this purpose the Government of Pakistan took revolutionary measure by the 18th
Amendment to Pakistans Constitution, approved in 2010, abolished the Federal Ministry of
Education and transferred full authority for education to the provinces, with the proviso that
education would be free and compulsory for all children between the ages of 5 to 16. Sindhs
Education Sector Plan (SESP) is a response to this mandate, and represents the first such
document prepared by the province. It continues to be guided by the National Education Policy
of 2009, but represents a significantly new vision of education goals and possibilities specific to
the rapidly evolving context of the province itself. Sindh is the second largest province in
Pakistan, and the most urbanized. It has relatively high rates of unemployment and poverty. For
the purposes of the Education Sector Plan, perhaps the most important characteristic of the
province is the enormous variation across districts in terms of socioeconomic status and
educational attainment. Girls are much more likely to be out of school in all districts. Indeed, in
16 out of 23 districts, more than 50 per cent of girls are out of school, compared to only 2
districts where this is the case for boys. The SESP tackles this inequity in the provision and
participation in education as the most important cross-cutting theme in the sector, and the
organizing principle around which policies and program will be implemented over the next fiveyear period. It addresses both access to education and quality of learning outcomes through the
prism of equity. It takes the perspective that Education for All (EFA) will not be achieved until
specific strategies are designed for the most marginalized children. It also articulates an approach
under which access and learning quality must be tackled jointly, given the clear evidence that
depressed levels of learning contribute to the provinces extraordinarily high dropout rates and
minimal progress regarding overall enrolment rates. The SESP focus on reducing inequity and
improving overall quality is consistent with its broader socioeconomic development strategy,
which highlights the need to reduce poverty and regional income inequality. The Sindh
government has initiated several fiscal reforms to increase its tax base and improve the delivery
of social services. A core part of this effort is to revive the rural economy, in part through
increased engagement of the private sector actors.

OBJECTIVES
Implementation Arrangements
A detailed matrix of responsibility for program implementation has been incorporated into the
text of this sector plan, as well as accountability mechanisms. Implementation of this SESP will
be the responsibility of the Education Department, with technical support provided by (RSU) the
Reform Support Unit.
The components of SESP are: (i) Increasing Equitable Access to Early Childhood Education,
Primary, Middle/Elementary and Secondary education; (ii) Improving the Curriculum and
Learning Outcomes; (iii) Improving Teacher Quality; (iv) Strengthening Governance and Service
Delivery; (v) Improving Resource Allocation; (vi) Adult Literacy and Non-formal Basic
Education; and (vii) Cross-cutting areas (ICT, Education in Emergencies, Gender Equity, Social
Cohesion and Public-Private Partnerships for Education). The SESP contains detailed activities
for each sub-sector, including but not limited to the net requirements for teachers, infrastructure,
equipment and facilities, together with the envisaged role of institutional donors and private
sector partners. The Plan focuses on improving Educational Governance through a number of
key actions (training and professional development, establishing a cadre for Education
professionals, office space and equipment / logistics oversight and monitoring, research and
development), since more effective governance is a critical precursor to improved service
delivery.
To increase equitable access to schooling and reduce dropout rates, SESP proposes that primary
schools be expanded to include middle /elementary schools. This will reduce the distances that
students have to travel to get to school and strengthen student retention in an equitable fashion,
whilst reducing unit costs. Early Childhood Education will be expanded substantially,
particularly among vulnerable populations. This is expected to increase the initial access of all
groups to primary schooling and increase the likelihood that children will persist in schooling for
a longer period of time, and with greater achievement. Cost savings will be identified to help
finance this expansion of services, for example consolidating small schools and clustering
existing schools for more efficient management and teacher deployment.
To improve learning outcomes, SESP proposes several major policy initiatives. Regular
evaluations of learning outcomes will become a feature of the sector to inform policy-making
and drive budgetary decisions. Teachers will also be provided with tools to conduct ongoing
classroom-level assessments of learning in core subjects such as reading and mathematics, in
order to provide real-time feedback regarding the impact of targeted revisions to the curriculum
and to teaching and learning practices. Quality assurance standards will increasingly focus on
learning outcomes rather than inputs. The proportion of funding made available for non-salary,
quality-enhancing inputs such as reading materials, science equipment and textbooks will be
significantly increased. Careful attention will be given to language of instruction, early grades
reading and mathematics competency, and time-on-task issues. Every effort will be made to
communicate and follow management through on greatly increased expectations for student
learning at all stages of the school system.

To improve teaching quality, all new teacher recruitment and advancement will be merit-based.
Teachers will be expected to have a Bachelors Degree in Education as a minimum and a
program of continuous professional development (CPD) will become part of long-term teacher
accreditation. The Provincial Institute for Teacher Education (PITE) will be transformed into an
autonomous institution to enhance professional development in Education Leadership.
A number of new measures will be introduced to strengthen governance and management
accountability. The general focus of these efforts will be to increase responsibility and resource
availability at district and sub-district levels. School Management Committees (SMCs) will be
revitalized and a professional

Reform Support Unit (RSU) is responsible for the technical support for the accomplishment and
implementation of this comprehensive and wide range purpose programs under SESP.

The Reform Support Unit (RSU) - Sindh was conceptualized as a means to build the institutional
capability of the Department of Education. The very rationale of this program is to streamline
existing edifice of education delivery and provide policy inputs for advancement of education
growth in terms of governance, access and quality education.

Mission

To create a capacity that would strengthen the Education Department's ability to adopt
and implement the education policy and strategy.

Install a well-integrated and functional monitoring system through an Institutional

Tracking System for tracking the outreach of incentives.

The Unit's areas of expertise are data collection, data analysis and its institutionalized
impact on policy and strategy.
Coordination of Policy and its implementation.

To ensure education of equitable quality for all to fully harness the nation's human
potential

Vision

Reinforce the national and integrative character of education.

Improve quality and standards of school education and literacy towards building a society
committed to Constitutional values.

Provide free and compulsory quality education to all children at elementary level as
envisaged under the Sindh Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2013
(Sindh Act No. XIV of 2013)

Universalize opportunities for quality secondary education.

Establish a fully literate society.

POLICIES
Program Design
The most notable program proposed under the SESP are as follows: (i) an initiative to
progressively
transform daycare-style Katchi classes into dynamic, child-centered ECE classes promoting
school readiness and equity; (ii) the introduction of double shifting across districts to increase
enrolment capacity; (iii) school consolidation, i.e. reduce the number of small schools; (iv) an
induction plan for new teachers and CPD for all teachers focused on learning outcomes in
general and reading in particular; (v) the creation of a new management cadre to enhance
governance; (vi) re-grouping of middle schools with primary schools and higher secondary
classes with secondary classes to achieve cost savings and improve transition rates and equity;
(vii) re-designing literacy and non-formal basic education to be taken to scale through reduced
reliance on traditional classroom contexts and greater use of mass media and social media
opportunities; (viii) design and implementation of an Human Resources Management System
(HRMS); (ix) improved monitoring system through hiring of monitors; and (x) establishment
of an effective Information and Communications Technology (ICT) system.

All of these programs have been designed to take into account existing capacity within the
system. Many will require close monitoring to guard against unintended side effects, for
instance school consolidation must ensure that schools remain within easy walking distance for
children, and double shifting must not result in loss of time available for teaching and learning. A
series of supporting programs under the title of STEDA, PITE, BOC and RSU are the programs
working to achieve the objectives of SESP.

SINDH EDUCATION SUPPORT PROGRAM (SESP)

In the year 2013-14, (Sindh Education Support Program-SESP) funded by European Union (EU)
was started in Reform Support Unit. The program assistance was to achieve the education-related
MDGs in the province of Sindh through improving quality and access in primary and secondary
education. It will also improve management and service delivery in the primary & pre-primary)
education levels.
Furthermore, SESSP will assist key initiatives of Sindh Education Sector Plan (financial
management, governance and quality education aspects). British Council, Pakistan is a technical
assistance agency of SESP and works closely with RSU and other stakeholders i.e. Sindh
Teacher Education Development Authority (STEDA), Bureau of Curriculum (BoC), Sindh

Textbook Board (STBB) and Provincial Institute of Teacher Education (PITE) are also working
to ensure the effective implementation of this program. SESSP supports in policy initiatives on
curriculum, textbook development, teacher training and assessment based on new curriculum.

SINDH EDUCATION SECTOR PLAN 2014-18

Education and Literacy department, Government of Sindh through the Reform Support Unit has
prepared Sindh Education Sector Plan 2014-18. The SESP has set targets with regard to various
reform initiatives being taken by the Sindh Government towards the Education Development by
increasing Access, Quality and improved Governance.

EFFORTS
All the programs commenced by SESP to achieve the prescribed goals are monitored by (RSU).

Teachers Recruitment (TR).

In order to provide quality education to the students, it is of utmost importance that the teachers
are recruited on merit basis. This Merit Based Teacher Recruitment was initiated in the Year
2012. For the purpose the Department of Education hired the service of National Testing
Services - NTS in order to ensure that the whole process is carried out in a transparent and
efficient manner. To date the Reform Support Unit has conducted three rounds of merit based
recruitment.
The Recruitment Policy of ELD ensured that the teachers are hired where they are needed and
are recruited from their locality/UC. Department of Education and the Reform Support Unit has
faced great challenges in implementation of this reform but it has undoubtedly helped in better
teaching methods, increased enrollment, reducing teacher absenteeism and opening of closed
schools.

SAT (Standardized Achievement Test).

Reform Support Unit, Education & Literacy Department initiated Standardized Achievement
Testing in the year 2012-2013 to assess the achievement level of the students of class V and class
VIII. Students have been appearing in this test since then in order to provide a real-time picture
of the quality of education being provided. Two major objectives of SAT were:
1.

To take into account the achievement of the students

2.
To create awareness among parents and communities to keep check & ensure student
performance.
SAT has greatly helped the Education Department in getting rid of the traditional rote learning
method of teaching, creating sense of shared accountability & awareness in parents, in reviewing

the curriculum, and linking the reforms with output rather than input, and shift to the result based
accountability.

School Specific Budget (SSB).

The Education & Literacy Department initiated allocation of School Specific Budgets in the year
2011. The need assessment, allocation and disbursement of these funds are managed at Reform
Support Unit. The financial support under School Specific Budget is based on the level, size and
enrollment of a particular school.
The SSB does not include the Salary budget however the heads under which SSB are provided to
schools are stationary, curricular activities, sports items, instructional materials, supplies,
library /laboratory items, furniture and travelling allowance, capacity building/training.
School Management Committees.
School Management Committees are formed in every main and functional school for better
management of the institution through community participation and shared accountability for the
education development. SMC is comprised of two bodies, General and Executive. The Executive
body has 5 members elected from the community and school; these include General Secretary
(Head Master), Chair Person (Parent) along with other three members (Parents/Guardians of
enrolled children). The General body includes all the parents/guardians of all the enrolled
students.

School Infrastructure Development (SID).

The initiative of School Infrastructure Development SID was undertaken in the year 2009-10
under SERP-I. The objective of this initiative is to improve the infrastructure and ensure the
provision of the basic facilities such as water, washroom, boundary wall, additional rooms and
such other immediate needs. This facility has helped in achieving increased enrollment and
accessibility to the children of the vicinity.

PROMOTING PRIVATE SCHOOLING IN RURAL SINDH (PPRS).

The Department of Education has established a separate node dedicated for the program of
Public Private Partnership (PPP) to increase access and to improve the quality of educational
services with support of the Private Sector. The PPRS intervention focuses on ensuring that the
children in marginalized areas have access to quality education.

Teacher Performance Management (TPM).

To enhance pedagogical skills of teachers, it is important to strengthen them through various
programs which develop their academic and practical knowledge. Under Sindh Education Sector
Reform Program SERP II, this initiative has been taken. Existing Teachers have been given

trainings and the newly hired teachers have been provided with Orientation and Induction
sessions.
The Teacher performance is being assessed/ evaluated every three months on average. This has
helped in implementing new teaching methodology, creating competence among the teachers and
administrators developing materials, and looking at the education developments globally

EDUCATION MANAGEMENT (EM).

This initiative of Education Management was basically taken in order to appoint Right Person at
Right Place by creating and setting apart the capacity of teachers and administrators. The
Department of Education has separated the teaching and administrative cadres in order to
strengthen both the fields so that there is efficiency in the system and the desired results are
achieved. This has improved the governance and administration from grass roots to the top
positions.
School Consolidation.
The need for consolidation arose due to past proliferation and mushroom growth of the school
coupled with poor planning and arbitrariness. The School with one room or two rooms with one
teacher was not a fair deal at all and it witnessed poor quality of service delivery. Campus
Schools will certainly result in supporting the Department of Education in provision of quality
education and effective management.

ANNUAL SCHOOL CENSUS (SINDH EDUCATION

MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM).
The SEMIS was established by the Education and Literacy Department in the year 1991. All
public schools in the province are provided with a SEMIS code. The objectives of SEMIS are:
1.
To conduct annual institutional census for public schools and the collection of the
educational statistics of the province.
2.
To provide and disseminate reliable and timely information to the researchers, planners,
administrators, policy makers and donors for this use of planning.
3.
The Annual School Census (ASC) data is collected through structured questionnaires
which provides information about public sector in three major areas.
1.

Physical Infrastructure

2.

Enrollment

3.

Human Resource information

Financial Management Information System (FMIS).

FMIS is established under SERP-I and is continuing under SERP- II. This helps in budgeting,
accounting and reporting for all initiatives under SERP. The budgeting includes cash plans and
releases made in accordance with the applicable laws.

RECOMMENDATION
The effectiveness of professional development depends on how carefully educators conceive,
plan, and implement it. There is no substitute for rigorous thinking and execution. Unfortunately,
many educators responsible for organizing professional development have had no formal
education in how to do so. The learning experiences they create for others are similar to their
own experiences, many of which were neither positive nor effective.
Education in Pakistan is overseen by the Federal Ministry of Education and the provincial
governments, whereas the federal government mostly assists in curriculum development,
accreditation and in the financing of research and development. Article 25-A of Constitution of
Pakistan obligates the state to provide free and compulsory quality education to children of the
age group 3 to 16 years. "The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children
of the age of five to sixteen years in such a manner as may be determined by law".
The education system in Pakistan is generally divided into six levels: Preschool (for the age from
3 to 5 years); primary (grades one through five); middle (grades six through eight); high (grades
nine and ten, leading to the Secondary School Certificate or SSC); intermediate (grades eleven
and twelve, leading to a Higher Secondary (School) Certificate or HSC); and university
programs leading to undergraduate and graduate degrees.
The literacy rate ranges from 96% in Islamabad to 28% in the Kohlu District. Between 2000 and
2004, Pakistanis in the age group 5564 had a literacy rate of almost 38%, those ages 4554 had
a literacy rate of nearly 46%, those 2534 had a literacy rate of 57%, and those ages 1524 had a
literacy rate of 72%. Literacy rates vary regionally, particularly by sex. In tribal areas female
literacy is 9.5%. Moreover, English is fast spreading in Pakistan, with more than 92 million
Pakistanis (49% of the population) having a command over the English language, which makes it
one of the top English-speaking nations in the world. On top of that, Pakistan produces about
445,000 university graduates and 10,000 computer science graduates per year. Despite these
statistics, Pakistan still has one of the highest illiteracy rates in the world. Within the context of
educational policies in Pakistan, the management of education has been reflected as a serious
concern in most of the education policies (e.g. 1970; 1972; 1992, 19982001). The National
Education Policy 2009, a current policy document for Sindh, particularly, focuses on educational
governance and considers failure in the commitment and implementation gaps as key reasons of
poor performance of the education system. This lack of commitment has been a major reason of
persistent failure in achieving goals in educational policies in Pakistan. No doubt, the current
Educational policy of Sindh government comprises all the qualities of modern educational

system in all respects. But continuous commitment and stickiness to the purpose are necessary to
achieve the desired results.

REFERENCES
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Pakistan
http://itacec.org/document/learning_resources/Sindh%20Sector%20Plan%20201316%20%20SESP%20-%20Sub-sectors,%20revised%20version,%2023-0613%20(2)%20sindh.pdf
http://www.sindheducation.gov.pk/Contents/Menu/Final%20SESP.pdf
References Annual Development Programmes, Sindh. (2013-14). Planning and Development
Department, Government of Sindh.
Annual Development Programmes, Sindh. (2010-11 and 2011-12). Planning and Development
Department, Government of Sindh.
Annual Status of Education Report ASER Pakistan 2012. South Asian Forum for Education
Development (SAFED).
Bengali, Kaiser (1999). History of Educational Policy Making and Planning in Pakistan.
Working Paper Series #40. Sustainable Development Policy Institute.
First Five Year Plan: 1955-60. (1957). National Planning Board, Government of Pakistan.
National Educational Policy. (2009). Ministry of Education, Government of Pakistan.
National Education Policy and Implementation Programme. (1979). Ministry of Education,
Government of Pakistan.
National Education Policy. (1992). Ministry of Education, Government of Pakistan.
National Education Policy. (1998). Ministry of Education, Government of Pakistan.
http://www.sindheducation.gov.pk/Contents/Menu/Final%20SESP.pdf
http://www.rsu-sindh.gov.pk/units/FMIS.php