Representatives of the Cambridge Assessment International Education with British Council’s country head and elite schools teachers and managers discussed on Wednesday the importance of understanding the importance of the impact of education on students and different ways to measure the impact at a conference here at Avari Hotel.
The Pakistan Schools Conference, where 220 teachers and school leaders from over 140 Cambridge schools were present, was hosted by Cambridge Assessment International Education (Cambridge International). The conference theme was ‘Measuring what matters: understanding and improving educational impact.’
“The concept of ‘educational impact’ has become increasingly important in academic research and education debate, as no school can make meaningful progress without understanding the effect of its practices on students’ learning,” explained Michael O’Sullivan, Chief Executive, Cambridge International to conference delegates.
“Cambridge schools across Pakistan work hard in many ways to help their students learn. They do this through careful curriculum design, inspiring extra-curricular activities, professional development of teachers, and the creation of school environments conducive to learning,” he continued.
During the conference, principals discussed how to measure the impact of their work, including the different methods used to do this and how to make the best use of the information gathered. They also examined how teachers can measure the educational impact of their lessons and the role that professional development plays in this.
Speakers included Tristian Stobie, Cambridge International’s Education Director, Dr Liz Taylor, education consultant, Rosemary Hilhorst, Country Director, Pakistan, British Council. A lively panel discussion explored ideas around the challenges of understanding impact and whether everything in schools can be measured. The panel discussion was moderated by Stephen Crowly from Beacon house School System while Michael Thomson from Aitchison College, Zarene Malik from Lahore Grammar School, Philip Hallworth from The City School and Nadine Murtaza from Headstart Schools were among the panelists.
Uzma Yousuf Zaka, Country Director, Pakistan, Cambridge International, said: “I am really excited to be hosting this conference on behalf of Cambridge International, which is our fourth flagship conference in Pakistan. This type of conferences are important as not only they generate meaningful debate around key educational issues, but also give us an opportunity to hear from Cambridge schools in Pakistan”.
One of the conference participants said: “I am delighted to a part of Pakistan Schools Conference that covers a very important theme about measuring the impact of everything that we do at schools as it helps us reflect, understand the gaps and in turn bring further improvement in teaching and learning at our schools.”
Over 600 schools offer Cambridge programmes and qualifications in Pakistan, including Cambridge O Level and Cambridge International AS & A Level.