School Quality Benchmarks

Do lesson planning

Extensively use concepts and approaches of lesson planning learnt during IQEP teacher training programs;

Use contextual examples to enrich lessons;

Refer to material other than prescribed text books for making lessons interesting and informative;

Use learning material provided by SEF to supplement teaching-learning activities and promote activity based learning;

Teach through a variety of child centered pedagogical methods including group work, activity based learning, story telling, role plays, puppet shows, skits, poems and songs etc;

Develop low-cost learning material in collaboration with children for classroom use and display;

Make efforts to improve the outlook of classrooms and school through regularly displaying self and children’s work;

Respect all children and treat them with kindness;

Are aware of children’s strengths and weaknesses and plans and delivers lessons accordingly;

Provide individual attention to children and makes efforts to resolve problems and issues they face;

Encourage parental involvement in children’s education; meet regularly with parents to discuss children’s progress, invite parents/grand parents to come into classrooms to volunteer help, tell stories, share anecdotes or teach a craft to children, assign home based projects to children where parents and children can work together and take suggestions and feedback from parents for improving the learning environment for children;

Base child assessment on observations, interactions and creative output during the term rather than merely on mid year or final exams;

Actively support teachers to implement innovative, child centered and activity based teaching-learning and assessment methods in class;

Reorganize themselves for assuming greater responsibility to participate and contribute in the quality improvement program for the school;

Meet regularly to discuss school issues and progress and plan for the future in the light of objectives and activities set out in IQEP. Keep documented evidence of these meetings.

Regularly visit to monitor classrooms to ensure implementation of child centered approaches for teaching-learning;

Ensure that the teachers are undertaking regular lesson planning;

Provide support to teachers whenever required (if unable to extend support in any specialized area of pedagogy, then refer the matter to SEF field team in Hyderabad for need based mentoring);

Liaison with school heads to jointly support teachers for implementing child centered pedagogy in classrooms;

Mobilize resources (junk material etc) to aid teachers for producing low cost learning material to enrich learning content;

Encourage teachers and children to produce displays of their creative work for improving the outlook of schools;

Ensure that the learning material provided by SEF is effectively being used in classrooms to enrich curriculum and lessons and promote activity based learning;

Make efforts to involve parents in children’s education and learning by scheduling parent-teacher meetings, assigning projects to children wherein they work closely with parents, inviting children to school events, encouraging parental involvement in classrooms by having parents tell stories, share anecdotes, teach a craft or volunteer to assist teachers for special assignments or routine class activities;

Plan and organize events where teachers, parents and children get opportunities to collaborate, participate and share and learn;

Participate in trainings, meetings and events organized by SEF;

Correspond and communicate with the Sindh Education Foundation to share progress and issues and seek support for better implementing quality interventions in schools;

Create linkages with local government, NGOs/CBOs, academicians, scholars, philanthropists etc for ongoing school development.

Participate actively and enthusiastically in learning activities;