RAWALPINDI: The Punjab government is re-designing textbooks and preparing curriculum and in this regard teachers gave their input at a workshop for the first time.

The three-day workshop organised by the Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board on the role of teachers in the curriculum designing held at the Quaid Academy for Educational Development.

The teachers from Rawalpindi suggested that the new curriculum should be made with localise approach and include civic sense matters to create awareness among the people.

More than 50 teachers and curriculum experts from the Rawalpindi participated in the workshop.

Secretary Inter Boards Coordination Committee Hussain Ahmad Madani, Director Curriculum Punjab Textbook Board Dr Tahir Mahmood, District Education Officer Rawalpindi Professor Dr Tariq Qazi, Principal Quaid Academy Abida Shaheen and Principal Kohsar Homeopathic College Prof Dr Munir Ahmed Chaudhary were the special guests in the workshop. Representatives of Unesco and Afaq including other local organisations relating to education sector also attended the workshop.

Addressing the workshop, Secretary Inter Boards Coordination Committee Hussain Ahmed Madani said the designing of curriculum was very sensitive and vital exercise because it was the curriculum which ‘makes a nation or which breaks a nation’.

He said the main objective of the curriculum should be the discovery of hidden talent in a child and polish their natural talent so that they become an effective member of the society.

He said the focus of the curriculum should be the creation of a society in which its members were more concerned about their responsibility than their rights.

He said the workshops had been held in Lahore and Rawalpindi and now it would be held in Multan.

Director Curriculum Dr Tahir Mahmood said the coordination was being made with teachers and other stakeholders across the province to strengthen curriculum and make it on par with the modern demands.

He said a similar workshop had been held in Lahore and another workshop would be organised in Multan.

Quaid Academy Principal Abida Shaheen said: “our curriculum makes children doctors and engineers but fails to find hidden talent in our children.”

She said the main objective of the curriculum should be personality and character building of a student in a classroom and should create civic sense among the students to make them responsible citizens.

Published in Dawn, June 29th, 2019