Transforming Schools in Pakistan - Book Review

Published by Oxford University Press, TRANSFORMING SCHOOLS IN PAKISTAN is edited by John Retallick and Iffat Farah.

This book emphasizes that it is possible to improve the quality of school education in Pakistan and other developing countries, and argues that schools need to be transformed into learning communities if significant improvement is to take place. In a traditional school only students are regarded as learners, and most learning is by rote, with little or no understanding. A learning community is a school where all participants are learners; students, teachers and head teachers etc. Parents are partners with teachers in assisting children to achieve their highest possible potential. Schools are a place where understanding, enquiry and questioning are encouraged in all teaching and learning encounters,and are a place where relationships of care and belonging are paramount-where teachers and students find learning fun. This book suggests ways in which schools might undertake the journey to becoming good schools.

John Retallick has been an Associate Professor at AKU-IED since 2002. Prior to this, he was in the Faculty of Education at Charles Sturt University, Australia, for 25 years. He has teaching and research interests in teacher learning, learning communities and, educational leadership and management. His publications include an edited volume Learning Communities in Education (1999), published by Routledge, and journal articles in the Journal of In-service Education and Teachers and Teaching.

Iffat Farah is an Associate Professor at AKU-IED. She has teaching and research interests in the area of school improvement, as well as education and development. She has published several research reports and book chapters.