ICAN dissemination event for children with sensory impairment held

Islamabad:Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi, in collaboration with Sightsavers and PAL Network, hosted the in-country dissemination event of the pilot project for Inclusive Guidelines of the International Common Assessment of Numeracy (ICAN) for children with sensory Impairment.

The event marked the successful completion of the field trial pilots in Pakistan using the ICAN tool in 2023, which garnered the WISE Award. Distinguished guests, including Mohyuddin Wani, Special Secretary, MoFE&PT, and Dr. Shahif Soroya, DG PIE, along with Zainab Iqbal, Education Specialist, FCDO and Noreen Hasan, Education Specialists at UNICEF, Izzah Farrakh from the World Bank, Sam Wilson, PD from MoFEPT, Greta Rollo from ASER, Abia Akram, CEO of the National Forum for Women with Disability, and key experts from the education and disability sectors in Pakistan graced the event.

The International Common Assessment for Numeracy (ICAN), available in 11 languages, is a collaborative effort by member countries under the PAL Network to provide a comparable, low-cost, and simple-to-use assessment for measuring foundational numeracy. Tailored to the realities of the Global South, ICAN is an accessible tool designed to measure and monitor progress on SDG 4.1.1 (a) and aligns with the Global Proficiency Framework.

Mohyuddin Wani, Special Secretary on behalf of the Federal Education Ministry, emphasized the need for all government institutions, including education, special education, EdTech, and reform units, to collaborate as a unified entity. He suggested that they should collectively develop, test, and implement the recommendations and solutions of the ICAN assessment exercise. He ensured full support from Federal Directorate of Education.