According to a new research: More than 90% of Pakistani children struggle in math and science.

As part of the HEC-funded study, over 15,000 students from 153 schools took standardized math and science assessments.

According to a statewide research undertaken by faculty at the Aga Khan University's Institute for Educational Development, Pakistan, more than 90% of primary and lower-secondary students in Pakistan only have a poor or basic understanding of the mathematics and science they are obliged to acquire (IED).

More than 15,000 students in grades 5, 6, and 8 from 153 public and private schools across Pakistan took conventional math and science tests as part of the project, which was supported by Pakistan's Higher Education Commission. All of the examinations were developed in accordance with Pakistani curriculum and were already verified for use in Pakistan.

The average math score was 27 out of 100. Science received an average score of 34 out of 100. Only 1% of students received a score of 80 or higher in either topic, indicating "good understanding," according to the study. .80 % of students were the children of parents with a high school certificate or less.

"Practitioners and policymakers need to pay attention to science and mathematics education," said Assistant Professor Nusrat Fatima Rizvi, Researchers found that multiple factors were significantly correlated with students’ learning results.

The researchers went into 589 instructors' classrooms to measure the quality of their instruction. Nearly 9 out of 10 teachers were rated as having poor teaching methods, while around 1 out of 10 were rated as having mediocre teaching practices. No teachers demonstrated appropriate teaching practices, according to the researchers.

rather than encouraging students to ask questions or participate in activities that bring concepts to life," said the study's primary investigator, Associate Professor Sadia Bhutta. "As a result, students struggle to grasp topics and score poorly on tests."

Teachers were also questioned in order to obtain a good understanding of the difficulties they confront. The conversations indicated the essential need for teachers to have professional development opportunities in order to improve their subject matter knowledge as well as their ability to reflect on their own teaching methods.

IED’s Dr Sadia Muzaffar Bhutta, Dr Nusrat Fatima Rizvi, Sohail Ahmad, Khadija Nadeem, Naureen Imran, Sabina Khan and Maimona Khan were part of the project’s research team.

The project's study team included IED's Dr Sadia Muzaffar Bhutta, Dr Nusrat Fatima Rizvi, Sohail Ahmad, Khadija Nadeem, Naureen Imran, Sabina Khan, and Maimona Khan.