Karachi mornings in October have their own unique energy. The streets are always bustling, the city’s heartbeat matched by its people. From October 22nd to 24th, 2024, I had the pleasure of overseeing and conducting volunteers training in Karachi West, for the ASER in Political Constituencies which began as a simple training session and later turned into an unforgettable experience, full ...
As our team approached Umerkot, I couldn't help but feel a sense of history hanging in the air. The land here, tied to Mughal Emperor Akbar’s legacy, carries a weight of the past, but beneath it, the hopes and dreams of today are unmistakable. Our purpose wasn’t to delve into the past, as this time we had come to see the present - the resilient children ...
Posted ByAnisha Saleem – Data Analyst (ASER Programme)
During the ASER 2023 cycle, my colleague and I set out early in the morning to visit "Bhikki," a village in Mandi Bahauddin, for monitoring the ASER survey exercise. The route to "Bhikki" was incredibly picturesque, adorned with lush greenery and scenic views (cutting down crops), a sight unseen in the bustling city. The journey proved to be a feast for the eyes. We reached our destination by 1...
Posted ByMeenal Javed - Research Analyst (ASER Programme)
The ASER 2023 survey cycle was my first time venturing deep into the villages of Punjab for spot-checks. Along with my colleague, Anisha, I set off early morning on a sunny day to visit two villages in Gujranwala, Punjab. After exiting the motorway and driving through bumpy roads amid lush green fields on the outskirts of Gujranwala, we finally arrived at Chak Dandhiyan. There we visited Govern...
In the heart of the valley of Kashmir, surrounded by beautiful mountains, with the Neelum river flowing alongside the city, one falls in love with Muzaffarabad at first sight. That is exactly what I felt when I visited Muzaffarabad for the first time in my life, for conducting ASER provincial training. There was something about that city which mesmerized me, from the mountain tops to the love a...
On a Sunday morning, my colleagues and I went to monitor ASER trainings in Thatta, which is 2 hours from Karachi city. I have always loved Thatta for its historical significance and beautiful lakes. It was my first month as a Research Associate at ITA and I was excited to go on my first monitoring trip. It was a group of 5 people, two representatives from our partner organization and three repr...
We were in “Laal Wah”, a distant village of Multan, to monitor ASER survey exercise. Our first step was to go and see a government primary school which was just a building with two classrooms and a veranda with no boundary walls or a playground. There we met 26-year old Rukhsana Begum who was the only government teacher appointed to teach children from class one to five. When we int...
In a small village of Dukki (a newly emerged district of Balochistan) alongside the unpaved paths and in between the steep slopes of the plateaus, I went to conduct the ASER survey. As I proceeded with the survey exercise, I had the opportunity to meet some amazing people and encounter pleasant experiences. After knocking several times at a door, a man with a sturdy frame came to greet us. Afte...
Walking through the unpaved path between the houses made up of bricks, leading to a village government school in Charsada, made me feel excited and filled with enthusiasm that I couldn’t wait to see the learners & the teachers. While walking, I recalled my field visit to a district training in Sawabi (KPK), where I was amazed to see 35 women volunteers wit...
Working as a Research Associate and evaluating government policies and private sector interventions, it is often very uplifting to see the different initiatives planned for reform. During fieldwork one comes across different cases; instances where the public sector is doing a wonderful job, or where the public sector is failing but the community and private sector t...
THE SHIP IS SAILING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION! The definition of development lies not with a practitioner but it is situated in the field. It is the raw experience of looking at the people, their culture, economic and social status. Annual Status of education Report initiated in Pakistan by Idara-e-Taleem-O-Aaghi in 2010 is a household survey and is embedded in the exp...
During two days training at Islamabad Capital Territory by Human Development Foundation (HDF), I have attended the sessions as master trainer. Mr. Asghar Hussain (HDF) was imparting the training on ASER 2016 research tools to volunteers. After ending the training sessions we went to field “Pin Mistryan” Village for pretesting of tools and practical exerc...
We were in “BhomaniWala” a distant and decayed school in Kasur district, where we acquired a chance to visit Government Girls Primary School BohmniWala. I was totally taken aback to see a school with no furniture and infrastructure but just a building with two classrooms and open space. Pupils were sitting on frosty floor, but were extremely energetic, a...
As part of the three day training at Ilm-o-Hunar Foundation (IHF) auditorium for the ASER data collection in district Vehari, I along with my team member Rao Irfan Khan, took training session as a master trainer. First day training sessions were based on a detailed account of how the survey would be conducted; the assessment tools used and the kind of data to be col...
After attending numerous ASER trainingssessions, it was finally the day I would get to experience the field. Master trainers from all over Punjab would demonstrate all they had learned about the do’s and don’ts of the ASER survey while the ASER team would monitor their understanding of how to conduct it.
Since 2010,ASER has strivedto improve the status of education nationwide. Each year after a gruelling process of conducting assessments and data compilation, ASER Pakistan produces a reliable set of data about what our children are learning.Being a part of this journey since the last 4 years, I have come across many families, children and teachers who have been positively affected by ASER...
As part of the three day training for the ASER data collection phase in Karachi, we went to district Malir. Walking down the narrow streets lined with trash, I felt like I had entered a village and had to remind myself that we were surveying the urban districts of Karachi. After walking for about ten minutes, we were standing in the heart of the town. It was a Friday morning and Kids were...
The spirit of ASER in the field is unmatched. For all those who think it is just a survey, need to visit the field when volunteers from far flung areas travel long hours on local transport to reach the village they have to survey, to check the learning levels of children of their districts and to gauge the enrollment in schools – such is the force of ASER.
Lower Dir is a district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where people are quite rigid with their religious norms andstrictly adhere to their cultural values. Being an enormously male dominated society, gender inequality is quite a common experiencedphenomena in the district.
During my monitoring visits to various districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,I...
Waking up in the dead of the night for a field visit felta little unusual but at the same time offered a break from the routine. We then started our six hour journey to Layyah as a party of four, each one with a separate agenda on our minds.
The road to Layyah is afascinating one. The small town is located a...
'ASER is not just a report but a movement across the country'.
Working at ASER Pakistan, I had heard and reiterated the above statement to others many times. However, I was able to fully comprehend this statement only when I had the chance to take part in one of the village baithaks.
This year ASER gave me the chance to conduct training in the district of Multan along with my colleague Huma Zia, Assistant Manager, ASER. I was very excited to deliver my session as this was the first time I was presenting in front of our district partners from South Punjab. As we started our training, we told them about ASER Pakistan and how the report is compiled...
I was conducting pilot survey for ASER in the outskirts of Peshawar which despite being in close proximity to the provincial capital gives a very remote rural look in terms of living patterns. As it was not an easy task for a stranger to roam in the hamlet by knocking at the doors of dwellings, so I decided to make the people know about my purpose of the visit prior...
We were in “Malot Sattiyan", a remote village of Rawalpindi, to monitor the process of ASER survey. Our first step was to access government primary school which was just a building with two class rooms and a veranda. There we met 28 years old Shumaila Bibi who was the only government teacher deputed to teach 35 students. “It’s the first time that somebody has visited this...
Being associated with ASER for years, it is now a routine process to travel to different places on short notice – such is the nature and the demand of my work. During the national planning of ASER 2014, I volunteered to go to Peshawar for the provincial training of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) and Federally Administrated Tribal Areas (FATA). I, along with another ...
“I am Sadori. I dropped out from class 5. I wanted to study more but my parents are poor. After completing primary education I wanted to go to a high school but my parents did not allow me." These were the words of thirteen year old Sadori, who dropped out after completing grade 5, from a government school in village Dhengo of district Naushahro Feroze.
It was a ...
Amjad regularly plays cricket at a nearby farm with his two brothers and friends in a village located near Narowal. He used to go to school till he was old enough to work in a nearby factory. His story was similar to the other young dropouts of his village who were forced to leave school for earning income for their families. These families not only were unable to p...
Today, we headed out towards a small village situated along the bank of River Kabul (a one hour drive from Peshawar, the village stretches for about 2 kilometers). Upon reaching, we were welcomed by lush green fields of sugarcane and small households, scattered across the terrain.
As we walked out for conducting the survey, the weather was pleasant with a cloudy sky. During the survey e...
Each year it is the luck of the draw as we venture into the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) survey on interrogating children’s learning levels across all districts of the country -in each district a random sample of 30 villages is selected, dividing each village into four quadrants and from each 5 houses are visited for the learning survey of 3-16 yea...
