2020: A Recap of the Year’s Successes at the Aga Khan Education Service, Pakistan

The Aga Khan Education Service (AKES) in Pakistan is one of the largest private networks of educational institutions in Pakistan, serving 47,000+ students from pre-primary to higher secondary.

Reaching the most remote areas of Pakistan, AKES operates 156 schools and 5 hostels in Gilgit-Baltistan, Chitral, Punjab and Sindh. These represent very diverse schools, ranging from rural schools with less than 100 students to large urban schools.

2020 has been unlike any other year in recent history. As the COVID-19 pandemic hit and schools physically closed, our teachers and leaders innovated to find ways to provide education and maintain learning continuity for students, through online and offline modes. A strong focus was placed on pastoral care and the social, emotional and physical wellbeing of students, their families and staff.

In spite of these tremendous challenges, students excelled in multiple academic and extra-curricular activities, whilst the portfolio increased its footprint and access to education in under-served areas.

Two students were winners at the national round of the Shaukat Khanum National Science and Engineering Fair. Mir Muqsit Ali of the Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, Karachi, won the Grand Prize for his project "Mind Talk", and Dua Asghar Ali of the Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan School, Karachi, won the "Award of Encouragement" for her research on rheumatoid arthritis.
(Photo taken prior to COVID-19)

 Aamna Ahmed of the Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, Karachi, won the Dawn Spelling Bee’s National Champion award.
(Photo taken prior to COVID-19)

Our students and staff won a number of awards at the Karachi United Championship.

The Aga Khan School, Garden, won the Junior Boys Football Championship and the Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, Karachi, won the Junior Girls Championship.

The coaches from both schools, Ms. Kausar Pareveen (Aga Khan School, Garden) and Mr. Ijlaluddin and Ms. Razmina Sultan (Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, Karachi) won awards for Best Coach.

Shumaila Hussain of the Aga Khan School, Kharadhar, won the Most Valuable Player Award.
(Photo taken prior to COVID-19)

Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, Seenlasht, students Shahzeb Ali and Naveed Ahmad won the Generation Unlimited Youth Challenge 2.0.

The Youth Challenge called upon innovators aged 14-24 to design solutions for the theme of "Opening Doors, Knowledge and Skills for Empowered Youth" to improve education, employment and civic engagement. Young people from 40 countries participated in the challenge. Shahzeb and Naveed presented an idea centered around tourism and hospitality in Chitral.
(Photo taken prior to COVID-19)

The Aga Khan School, Hafizabad, planted 60 trees in the local area as part of a city-wide "My Tree-My Hafizabad" campaign, launched by the city’s administration.
(Photo taken prior to COVID-19)

To encourage students to keep reading in the immediate aftermath of lockdown, the Aga Khan Schools across Pakistan launched DEAR – Drop Everything And Read.

Students were encouraged to maintain a log of all the books they read and write reviews. In areas without easy access to books, teachers and volunteers distributed books from school libraries door to door, whilst observing the recommended precautions of wearing masks and maintaining physical distance.
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To ensure education continuity in the immediate aftermath of lockdown, the Aga Khan Schools across Pakistan launched remote learning.

In the North, a programme through cable television was launched in all the areas where Aga Khan Schools are located in Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral. The transmission ran from 8am to 2pm Monday to Saturday. Study packs with learning materials were made available to students, in addition to resources through USB drives (Find out more).

In the South, an online programme was launched at all eight schools. The daily timetable provided students with a holistic curricular experience including classes in the various subjects, physical education, arts and crafts, as well as health and hygiene. To allow flexibility to families and meet the unique schedule of each household, pre-recorded videos were provided via Google Classroom which students could watch at any time.

Maira Jawwad, a second year Pre-Medical student at the Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, Karachi, was selected for the US Summer Sister Exchange Program.

The program is a fully funded scholarship which offers female high school students the opportunity to attend pre-college summer programs at prestigious American universities. The students study science, leadership and international affairs, amongst other topics. Unfortunately the visit to the USA has been postponed due to COVID-19.
(Photo taken prior to COVID-19)

Following the school closures in response to COVID-19, the Aga Khan Schools first physically reopened in phases between 15 September and 1 October 2020, following strict health and safety measures. The first to return were secondary school students, followed by middle school and primary school.

It was wonderful to see our classrooms filled once again with students eager to learn, however schools have since been physically re-closed for a short period due to government regulations and are now undergoing a phased reopening from January 2021.

In a quest to provide students with greater opportunities, the Aga Khan Education Service in Pakistan, with the support of local leaders, assumed the management of two community-based primary schools in October 2020. One school is in the village of Vur in Sindh, and the other is in Dolomuch, Chitral. As a result of this, students will now be able to seamlessly transition from pre-primary all the way to the end of higher secondary. It will also increase enrolment for approximately 400 students across the two schools. Sustained access to quality education is critical towards the growth and transformation of students.
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The caretaker Chief Minister for Gilgit-Baltistan, Mir Afzal Khan, visited the Aga Khan Higher Secondary School, Gilgit, on 29 October 2020 with the Minister for Education - Mr. Abdul Jahan Khan, Minister for Health - Dr. Imam Yar Baig and mountaineer and adviser to the government - Samina Baig.

The guests toured the school and spoke with the teachers and the students, and appreciated the high standards of education.

An urban forest was planted at the Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan School, Karachi, with support from the school’s alumni and the NED University of Engineering and Technology.

The forest covers 48 square meters (516 square feet) and contains 154 trees of 14 local species, including mulberry, almond, fig, lemon and tamarind.

A new ECD building at the Aga Khan School, Sultanabad in Sindh was completed and then inaugurated on 3 November 2020. The new building can accommodate almost 200 students and has a staffroom, a head teacher’s office and a kitchen, along with classrooms and other learning and activity spaces.

 Aliza Sabir, a grade 10 student at the Aga Khan School, Garden, was selected to play football for the Pakistan Army in the 2020-2021 National Championship.
(Photo taken prior to COVID-19)