Overview

An important area for AKU-IED is Outreach. This is most visible in the Institute ' s work towards developing a network of Professional Development Centres (PDC) in Pakistan, Central Asia and East Africa. It also includes the establishment of professional networking associations by AKU-IED graduates.

PDCs are established by AKU-IED in association with one or more partners or associates to offer a variety of professional development courses and programmes aimed at improving the quality of teaching. The PDCs act as regional or national educational and intellectual resources. The quality assurance of courses conducted at the PDCs is the responsibility of AKU-IED. PDCs are staffed by AKU-IED faculty and AKU-IED MEd graduates also called Professional Development Teachers (PDTs) who serve as PDC faculty.

PDCs have several other characteristics. They admit course participants from multiple systems as their direct beneficiaries (AKDN; Government; Private sector; NGO sector). They are involved in creating contextually relevant models for teacher development and also provide at least a modest research and evaluation capacity alongside their teaching programmes. The Centres also facilitate on-site teaching, library and computing support through AKU-IED's Open Learning programmes.

Currently AKU-IED has three PDCs across Pakistan; one in Karachi which is embedded within the Institute, a second PDC in Gilgit, Northern Areas, and a third PDC in Chitral, NWFP. AKU-IED also supports PDCs and PDC like activities of its various partners, both in Pakistan and other developing countries.