Literacy Coordinators/Supervisors Role in Education

There is a leadership crises at school level that neither a holistic vision for school as an institution exist, nor is there any remedial action taken to ensure positive changes in teaching and learning practice for minimum standard learning outcomes in the class room. . Mostly the educational reforms are limits to popular rhetoric, only and the real change in the classroom is still a castle in the air.

In spite of number of training being imparted to teachers by number of governmental and non-governmental institution/agencies are in isolation and without having provision for proper follow up support. . Most of the trainings, are practiced as one fine activity without any follow up and demonstrative mechanism, which do not have any relative link to actual school and classroom environment. Arguably, it is evident any organization or institution in Balochistan can not show the impact of teacher training in relation to the classroom learning for last many years. Rather most of the in-service training is imparted in duplication as an activity of the annual project plan. Among all these directionless interventions children and schools in public sector are the worst sufferers. Since there is a leadership gape particularly at the district and school levels no of in-service training are not owned by the teachers, hence create confusion and some time hegemonic situation.

In theory, Learning Coordinator was/is supported to facilitate the learning process in schools but due to number of reasons learning coordinators either do not visit the teachers/schools or visit the schools administratively. Learning Coordinator as cadre is never utilized seriously nor given any specialized training on facilitating and measuring learning outcomes and create an enabling environment in the classroom for life learning and progress. Therefore, they play a policing role rather than facilitator during their visits to schools.

it has been observed that female LC s never visit independently, rather they accompany the DOE, which is not the point for two supervisors having different supervisory role to monitor the same school at time. Similarly, male LCs spends most of the time in DOE office due to lack of their mobility arrangement to schools. Whenever, they get an opportunity to visit the assigned schools, they can not discharge their responsibilities as learning facilitators due to their limited capacities in this specialized field, but their visit is confined to superficial administrative and operational matters.

One of the major problems is lack of any comprehensive system at district level that can ensure placing/posting of potential person as LC on right place nor is there any planning mechanism to ensure proper allocations for their mobility and accountability of performance. Therefore, no reliable information on enrolment, retention and learning outcomes exist in districts for analysis and future planning. Secondly the existing selection criteria in Govt system is also one of the major hurdles in achieving the desired results, through which LCs are appointed/posted on seniority bases, even when they are quite close to retirement from the service, hence, dynamism is almost lost.
 
If we are committed to have meaningful and quality education in government primary schools, where a large number of rural children are studying, then we have to seriously focus quality education holistically. Out of which one is capacity and reshaping the stereotypical role of LC. In this regard Youth in Action Balochistan propose a strategic investment in building their capacities and ensuring productive utilization of this cadre for creative and vision driven learning of the future generation.