President Arif Alvi recently conferred the Education Excellence Award on Shehzad Roy, a philanthropist and education activist, for his exceptional contributions to educational reforms and child support.
The award was presented at a summit organized by the Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry at the Aiwan-e-Sadar. Along with Roy, a few other educationists, including Dr. Muhammad Amjad Saqib, the head of the Akhuwat Foundation, were also honored for their services in the education sector.
Roy, who is also a singer, is the founder and president of Zindagi Trust. He has received several awards for his exemplary service to the country, including Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, Sitara-e-Eisaar, and Sitara-e-Imtiaz.
One of Roy's notable achievements is his untiring efforts to criminalize corporal punishment in Pakistan. He played a crucial role in lobbying for the passage of a law by the National Assembly that prohibits hitting children in good faith, which was previously deemed acceptable. This achievement was made possible due to the tireless work of Roy and his team at Zindagi Trust.
Another milestone achieved by Roy and his team was the integration of Aahung's curriculum of life skills-based education (LSBE) into the school curriculum of Sindh.
This initiative was aimed at protecting millions of children from being abused. The LSBE curriculum is designed to teach children essential life skills, such as self-awareness, decision-making, problem-solving, and critical thinking.
Roy and his team also developed a new teacher performance evaluation format for government teachers, which was approved by the Sindh government. Under this format, teachers are evaluated based on factors related to the teaching profession, such as student-centered teaching and active classroom management. This is a departure from the generic metrics of the Annual Confidential Report (ACR) that are applicable to all civil servants.
In addition to his work in education, Roy is also an ambassador for family planning and population for the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations, and Coordination. He is in the process of finalizing an online reproductive health course developed by the National Committee for Maternal and Neonatal Health.
The course will be linked with the National Database & Registration Authority (Nadra), which means that any couple who gets married will have to complete this course to get their nikkah nama registered with Nadra.
This initiative has the potential to immensely increase couples' knowledge about spacing, contraceptives, mother and child health, and, at the end of the day, impact population growth. Roy's efforts in this regard are commendable, as they are geared towards empowering individuals to make informed decisions about their reproductive health.
Shehzad Roy is a deserving recipient of the Education Excellence Award for his exceptional contributions to educational reforms and child support. His work in education, particularly in criminalizing corporal punishment, integrating LSBE into the school curriculum, and developing a new teacher performance evaluation format, has made a significant impact on Pakistan's education sector.
His efforts towards promoting reproductive health education and family planning are also commendable and have the potential to positively impact the country's population growth.
