ABSTRACT

This article reports a research study conducted with four chemistry teachers in three high schools (two government schools and one private school) in Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan. The study investigated questions concerning common difficulties high school (Grades 9 and 10) students experience in chemistry classroom, the possible reasons for these difficulties, and the ways in which teachers help students overcome these difficulties. A qualitative case study method was used to investigate the questions, which used in-depth interviews with teachers, classroom observation, and postobservation discussion with the teachers, as main data collection tools. The key findings of the study allude to a huge gap between what is intended in the National Curriculum in terms of students’ learning in chemistry and what actually happens in the classroom where students learn chemistry. Promoting in-depth learning appeared to be an uphill task for the teachers. The main hurdle lies in students’ inability to demonstrate a good understanding of very basic concepts of the subject. Despite faced with such a challenge, the teachers appear to be committed to teaching their subject. The implications of the results of the study are explained in the context of schools, teachers, and other educational stakeholders by emphasizing the need for synchronization and integration of efforts on the part of schools.

THE SOCIOECONOMIC CONTEXT

Gilgit-Baltistan, most recently known as Northern Areas, is a partially self-governing territory under Pakistani control. It forms parts of Pakistan’s international borders with China to the northeast, Afghanistan to the northwest, and Indian- and Pakistan-administered Kashmir to the southeast.

In the last census (1998), the population of Gilgit-Baltistan was 870,347. The population is growing with the rate of 2.8% and, according to a recent estimation, the population has approached 1 million (Government of Pakistan, 2010).

Despite some positive socioeconomic changes, the region remains one of the most disadvantaged in Pakistan. The geographical isolation, hard climatic conditions, mountainous environment, and scarcity of resources contribute to the region’s continuing socioeconomic backwardness. People have very limited access to essential facilities such as health care, education, communication, electricity, and transportation. Most people (90%) live in sparsely scattered remote villages. The annual per capita income is estimated at 60% of the national standard of US$1,047 (Government of Pakistan, 2009a). The communities depend for their livelihood on a variety of sources such as substance farming, employment with government and private sector organizations, and limited commercial activities (e.g., trade with China, tourism, retailing, transport, and running restaurants). The major source of livelihood, however, remains subsistence farming of wheat, corn, barely, vegetables, fruits, and cattle. Marketing of fresh and dried fruits such as apple, pear, cherries, apricot, almond, and walnut contributes to families’ income (The Aga Khan Rural Support Program, 2000).

The education indicators for Gilgit-Baltistan Pakistan fall below the national average, and the quality of education in the region is inferior to that of the rest of Pakistan (The Aga Khan Development Network [AKDN], 2001). The adult literacy rates are 64% for males and 34% for females (Government of Pakistan, 2010). The gross school enrolment and literacy rates, particularly the level of participation in middle and secondary education, vary substantially from place to place within the region, both rates being generally lower for women (AKDN, 2001).

The most widely recognized challenge to school improvement in Gilgit-Baltistan comes from deeply entrenched instructional practices that make students memorize a great deal of information with the limited purpose of reproducing it in the Board Examinations (The Aga Khan Education Service, 2005; The Aga Khan Foundation, 1998; Shafa, 2003; World Bank, 2004). The Aga Khan Education Service (2005) noted, “Teaching methods are teacher-centered and do not encourage student participation. Rote memorization and moral dictates go hand in hand with a punitive school environment” (p. 24). It further points out that the quality of education is particularly low in the rural areas because schools have insufficient material resources and staff, and teachers are either untrained or poorly trained. The report also says that most teachers have little exposure to English and few opportunities to practice it and that, in many cases, teachers have inadequate content knowledge, particularly in mathematics and science.