OUP launches ambitious programmes for child education

Karachi
The Oxford University Press (OUP), on Thursday announced the launching of two innovative initiatives for children’s education in Pakistan, titled, The Oxford Big Read (OBR programme and the Oxford Quality Schools (OQS) programme.
Announcing this at a local hotel, OUP (Pakistan) Managing Director Ameena Saiyid said the motive behind the OBR was to induce children into reading quality reading materials and to inculcate in them a life-long love for reading, leading to the appreciation of the written word and enhanced critical and thinking skills.
Students participating in the competition would not only be required to read OUP books but also write critical reviews on them. The reviews would be judged first at the regional level whereas the finalists would then compete at the national level, with the first three winners qualifying for prizes.
“The main purpose behind the institution of this programme is to encourage children to read beyond their curricula, to inculcate in them a zest for knowledge, all of which cannot be accommodated in the prescribed text books.”
The programme also aimed at inculcating in children a critical and analytical outlook towards issues from an early age, Saiyid added.
The books for the children would be a hundred in number and would cater to the primary, lower secondary, and higher secondary levels. They would be made available at the OUP outlets.
By December 2015, entries would be submitted, whereas the final sessions would be held in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad, where the three finalists will be awarded prizes. The exercise would start from December 2015 and end in March 2016.
As for the Oxford Quality Schools (OQS) programme, it would work towards the shared pursuit of excellence in education. Introduced internationally by the Oxford University Press (UK), it was now making an entry into Pakistan too.
“The programme will be conducted under an agreement between the OUP and Pakistani schools that come up to the selected criteria,” said Mrs Saiyid.
Institutions joining the OQS will be awarded an OQS certificate endorsing their commitment to using quality teaching aids from the OUP. The selected schools will be competent to use the OQS strips on promotional literature, signboards, and the OUP (Pakistan) web site: www.oup.com.pk