“Believe in yourself; stay humble and keep growing to learn, unlearn and relearn” - Baela Raza Jamil

Baela Raza Jamil is the CEO of Idara-e-Taleem-o-Agahi (ITA) centre for education and consciousness. She also works at multiple levels as a managing trustee in Sanjan Nagar Public Education Trust (SNPET). She is also associated with many incredible boards and institutions that are making a difference globally including The Learning Generation Initiative, Yidan Prize Foundation, International Bureau of Education (IBE) UNESCO; People’s Action for Learning (PAL) Network; ILM Association on digital/EdTech learning and many more.

Baela served as Technical Advisor to the federal Ministry of Education for designing and implementing education sector reforms action plan (2001-2004/5). She has actively promoted ECCE (Early Childhood and Education), girls’ education and life skills, gender rights, child rights anchored in public private partnerships. She leads the citizen-led assessment and accountability initiative, ASER Pakistan, a trigger for multiple programmes including accelerated Teaching at the Right Level (TARL) or Chalo Parho Barho (CPB), for remedial foundational learning.

Baela is the founder of the Pakistan Learning Festival (PLF), a social movement in its own right. A public policy specialist, she is a believer in alliances and coalitions for education learning and transformation, adolescent and youth empowerment, ending violence against women and early and forced child marriages. Baela has led school improvement as a niche since 2000, ECCE and the second chance programme for adolescent girls in Pakistan, Siyani Sahelian (wise friends), recognised as a HundrEd innovation in 2022-23.

Baela studied Liberal Arts at Rosemont College, Pennsylvania, USA, then she did her Masters in Economics and History at SOAS University of London and obtained by PhD degree in Economic and History at Emory University, Atlanta. However, she did her second Masters in Education Management and Supervision from Georgia State University, GA, followed by her MPhil degree in Comparative Education from Institute of Education, University of London, UK.

Recently, Baela Raza Jamil, the only finalist from Pakistan, has been shortlisted for the World Education Medals, recognising her exceptional contributions to education. Her work with Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi and Sanjan Nagar School has greatly impacted Pakistan’s education system. Her initiatives have reached over 20 million children and thousands of teachers. (The winner will be announced in October). In an exclusive interview with You! magazine, Baela shares her extraordinary journey with our readers...

You! Tell us a bit about your early years?

Baela Raza Jamil: My early years were fascinating. I am the first generation born post partition. Our homes situated at Fane Road, right behind the back High Court gates, Lahore, were homes to lawyers from Lucknow and Ferozepur in India since both my grandfathers were from legal fraternity. I was impressed by diversity; knowledge seeking – great number and great variety of people living together under multiple roofs of 8 and 10 Fane Road, Lahore.

I grew up in diverse sub-cultures of Muslim households with their own languages and their own traditions. Our large homes, especially my paternal grandfather’s home, still standing behind the High Court, were used for giving shelter to migrant families as they arrived in Lahore then mostly moved to Karachi and settled there. I had great memories of being loved and hundreds of storytelling by hundreds of people and relatives and celebrating festivals including Holi and Muharram, Bismillah etc.

My parents shifted to Karachi when I was 4 years old. My father went to prison as a Communist at Karachi Central Jail. My memories of visiting him in a closed room without a skylight are still vivid. In Karachi, I studied in different schools. Jack N Jill was my first school and later, I studied at PECHS School. We lived in Karachi for almost five years and then returned to Lahore when I was 9 years old. As a child, I was very naughty and rebellious; we had learnt to climb trees and pipes, and ride bicycles in the neighbourhoods that were so safe.

You! What inspired you to become an educationist?

BRJ: It was my own negative encounters as a student from the age of 4 including adversities and biases against girls that made me step into this field. I have been working in education formally as a professional since 1985 that began in a public high school in USA (a magnet school with an IB Diploma programme) and the rest is history.

You! What do you like most about your work?

BRJ: Constant learning; exploring new frontiers of learning - be it in Tharparkar or Sobral or Bahawalpur or Gwadar or Upper Chitral or Gojjal; meeting new people from diversified fields who are doing incredible work. These young champions give you hope.

You! What is the main objective of Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi (ITA)?

BRJ: ITA was launched in 2000 when I moved back to Lahore from Karachi after a three years stint in Sindh - it is nationwide and beyond. The primary objective of ITA is to build a nation-wide social movement for progressive education, learning and skills for all children, adolescents and youth inclusively through evidence, innovations and partnerships.

You! What motivated you to initiate the Children’s Literature Festival (CLF)?

RBJ: The low learning levels of children which were found at scale in the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) in Pakistan in 2010 provoked me to start the Children Literature Festival in a bid to encourage children to read and cultivate reading habits in them. So, began the journey in November 2011. The idea of the festival was to engage with meaningful higher ordered learning without stress by inculcating 5 Cs (Critical thinking, Creativity, Communication, Collaboration and Character) and the joy of reading without any discrimination to all school systems in Pakistan.

Children’s Literature Festival (CLF) is now rebranded as the Pakistan Learning Festival (PLF), a movement to generate positive social capital creating networks and associations for the purpose of ‘unlocking the power of learning, reading, self-expression and critical thinking’. The festival is curated across multiple-learning strands, is multi-disciplinary, multi-lingual and inclusive for all. PLF targets children (3-18); teachers and youth in colleges and universities.

You! How are you feeling about being shortlisted for the World Education Medals?

BRJ: Oh, all these medals belong to large teams and so many people. The short-listing for Asia is indeed a great honour; even this belongs to all the people and influencers, the teachers, the activists and colleagues with whom I work.

You! Can you shed some light on your programme for adolescent girls in Pakistan, Siyani Sahelian (wise friends)?

BRJ: I have been inspired with programs on girls’ education since 1992. ‘Siyani Sahelian’, also called ‘Advancing Action for Adolescent Girls’(aged 9-19), is a combination of Teaching at the Right Level (TARL) - every adolescent girl’s customised learning to engage in an academic track but with life skills to give voice, leadership and expression backed by capabilities and learning.

The Remedial/Accelerated Learning is among the key components of the ‘Siyani Sahelian’ programme. As part of the initiative, 179 partner centres across South Punjab have collaborated to provide marginalised girls with quality education. ‘Siyani Sahelian’ also offers (TEVTA), Technical Education & Vocational Training Authority, certified vocational courses in tailoring, embroidery and beautician alongside a one-week workshop on financial literacy for better market placements. These skills help females secure a decent livelihood by making them economically self reliant. Through our SS programme 1000 + girls are now running their own business. Some girls went through TARL, completion of middle and secondary with life skill and then proceeded with certified program with digital skills and financial inclusion etc. We are in touch with lots of the alumni in the 4 districts of Punjab, now expanding to many more.

You! Sanjan Nagar School is anothe reform of yours, what is it all about?

BRJ: For ‘Sanjan Nagar’ the trajectory has been extraordinary and inspirational; it is a unique school for the most disadvantaged - showing that with great education, securing children’s future is possible. Our alumni (both girls and boys) are doing brilliantly not just in Pakistan but also across the world as scholars, software developers, pharmacists, doctors, educators, EdTech specialists, artists/illustrators, economists and researchers etc.

You! You also served as Technical Advisor to the Federal Ministry of Education. Is there anything that you wish to change about the teaching standards in the country?

BRJ: We need to invest more in better quality preparation programmes for teachers. They need to have a comfort level with skills on technology, AI, and child focused communication. Teachers need to be extended a space of trust, dignity and values in which they thrive; this is critical, and teachers must earn these not as entitlements but as core aspects of their performance.

You! You are one of the pioneer activists working in the education space in Pakistan. What were some of the greatest challenges that you faced?

BRJ: All kinds, but I am so thick skinned, I never got demoralised; you name it - as a woman, running a woman-headed institution amidst fears of agencies and other severe stakeholders ready to pounce on you at just one mistake - so, nothing is easy. However, if you have a vision and capability to back your pathways on a driven journey; you tend to become profoundly resilience because of your beliefs and evidence with which you work; the achievement is secondary but the journey and conviction is important to keep growing and believing. For me, 68 years have gone by and the challenges remain fresh in my mind as a 4-year-old, 6-year-old; 10-year-old; 14-year-old; 21-year-old and so on.

You! What’s the greatest risk you’ve taken as a professional?

BRJ: I have taken all sorts of risks - from being nearly killed by a local councillor in Lahore to being stopped by bandits in the kacha of Dadu; from travelling alone from Mianwali to DI Khan to Sherani to Zhob, to Sibbi to Jaffarabad to Gwadar. I also drove to Karachi during the 2022 floods amidst life threatening conditions.

There were numerous occasions where I was threatened by people who were adamant to cease my mission. I remember when I first visited Mianwali in 1992; I faced tough opposition from local people as they were against girls’ education in a segregated society. However, I did not give up and came up with a smart idea of educating men and women both at the same time by dividing the space (school premises) with tall charpoys in the middle with women sitting on one side and men on the other. My efforts bore fruit and local people started to change their views on girls’ education in Mianwali.

You! To what extent do you think teachers influence Pakistan’s education system?

BRJ: A lot, perhaps 99 per cent. They remain the front line of learning. We cannot undermine the influence of teachers in our education system – be it public or private. As they say, it takes a village to raise a child; it takes a team to educate a child too at home or in school.

You! What is the most important advice you would give to women?

BRJ: Believe in yourself; make yourself heard; stay humble and keep growing to learn, unlearn and relearn. Make time for yourself, invest in yourself amidst very packed routines so that you may be in touch with your inner core.

You! Could you name a woman who has inspired you the most?

BRJ: Anita Ghulam Ali, besides my mother and grandmother.

You! What does a typical day look like for you?

BRJ: I like to keep myself busy. I am on my toes all the time; I wake up around 7:30 /8:00 am then I attend office from 9 am to 6 pm. I can be doing 20 different tasks in a day from public speaking to visits to the field; working with teams, etc.

You! Your life philosophy?

BRJ: Keep learning and growing till the very end.

You! How do you unwind?

BRJ: Weekend shopping for vegetables and family food; arguing with vendors in the market and cooking. Singing, listening to music, going to movies, art galleries, museums; old market places enjoying my grandchildren - telling stories to them; going to the parks are also some of my ways of relaxation. One of my biggest indulgences is travelling across Pakistan – my spectacular country is just breathtakingly inspirational.

You! What is your most treasured possession?

BRJ: My people and relationships and my ideas with whom I thrive - all of them.

You! How do you keep balance between family life and work?

BRJ: 1/3rd work; 1/3rd my growth and 1/3rd family (my father taught this to me when I was a teenager and I have stuck with that formula), it works wonders; I love all three to no end. However, I also give importance to myself. I love to learn and grow professionally. I never like to feel sorry for myself.

You! Are you working on any exciting new projects?

BRJ: Yes, we are working on girls’ education and learning in the most challenging districts of the country especially in Merged Districts of KP and also South Punjab and urban slums. We are also working on scaling up ‘foundational learning’ in some of the toughest districts of Sindh and urban slums – creating multiple teams to learn the approaches that work, backed by evidence, capacity and most importantly by action.

We are working on projects that are focused on ending violence against women, ending early and forced child marriages. We are also curating learning products that are endogenous and rich in everyday content, in more transportable and doable formats including digitisation especially in climate change, heritage and STEM.

Erum Noor Muzaffar is the editor of You! magazine. She can be reached at iram29@hotmail.com