Hamdard Educus

Education in the Troubled Water of Natural Disasters: A Qualitative Analysis

Muhammad Ilyas Khan — 2025-12-31

Natural disasters have become increasingly and frequently devastating, disrupting the lives of millions and posing grave challenges to education systems worldwide. The aim of this qualitative study is to explore the negative impacts of the natural disasters on the educational well-being of the BS students of the Sarhad University of Information Technology (SUIT), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The sample of the study was purposive, and semi-structured interviews were conducted for in-depth and rich information from the ten key informants of the study. The nature of interviews was kept different for the university educators as well as for university BS students. The collected data from the respondents were thematically analyzed. The findings of this study suggested that natural disasters like cloud bursts, floods, earthquakes, famine, and landslides, as well as pandemics, have gravely affected the academic, social, and physical infrastructure. The study also revealed that the students have been affected financially, emotionally, and economically, and the repercussions of their educational setbacks cannot be overlooked. The actualization of an alternate virtual education system in times of disasters and emergencies is the dire need of the day.

The impact of the authoritative parenting style on the emotional development of a kindergarten student enrolled in a private school in Karachi, Pakistan.

Ikhlas Saeed — 2025-12-31

This case study investigates how an authoritative parenting style affects a kindergartener's emotional growth while attending a private school in Karachi, Pakistan. Children's development is recognized to be impacted by authoritarian parenting. It is characterized by strict standards coupled with attentiveness and emotional warmth. Its distinct effects on a young child's emotional development in an urban learning setting are examined in this study. The study uses qualitative methods, including in-depth interviews, observations, and discussions with parents, instructors, and the student, to identify critical elements of emotional development, such as self-confidence and self-esteem. The results show that parenting styles and a child's capacity to manage emotions, form bonds with others, and adjust to difficulties in a structured learning environment interact in a complex way. These observations highlight how important balanced parenting is for promoting emotional health in young children, and they have ramifications for parents and teachers who want to promote the holistic development of their charges.

Impact of AI Assisted Feedback on Academic Performance of Undergraduate Engineering Students in Karachi

Mariam Aftab — 2025-12-31

In Pakistani context, excelling writing skills is considered a strenuous task for second language learners. At undergraduate level, students often struggle in their academic writing classes. It has been a challenge for students to outshine the skills of drafting, organizing, and outlining error-free essays. Since the emergence of AI tools like ChatGPT, it has been known to offer extensive support to ESL learners for writing tasks in particular. With the ease of access for AI tools, there is a need to explore its contribution as a feedback tool in formal academic settings apart from content generation. Previous studies have explored the impact of ChatGPT as a feedback tool on students’ learning and its effectiveness in improving writing skills. However, the impact of AI assisted feedback on the performance of students in their final examination remains underexplored. Using a quasi-experimental design, the present study examined the impact of ChatGPT as a feedback tool on academic writing tasks and formal examination performance. Data was collected from 103 undergraduate students studying at a Public Sector Engineering University in Karachi. Pre-and post-tests were used to measure writing improvements with post-test conducted as part of their final semester exam. A questionnaire was used to examine the perceptions of students about ChatGPT’s usability and effectiveness as a feedback tool. Results from the paired sample t-test revealed a statistically significant improvement in post-tests scores. Descriptive analysis of the questionnaire indicated positive perceptions of students regarding usability, feedback clarity, writing confidence and preference for collective feedback (AI + instructor). These findings suggest that ChatGPT, when integrated with instructional guidance, can enhance writing performance even among students with limited prior AI exposure.

Enhancing Student Achievement and Engagement through Multimedia-Supported Instruction: A Comparative Study of Cambridge Learners

Salman Ashiq — 2025-12-31

This study explored the comparison of multimedia-supported instruction and traditional lecture-based teaching, in order to improve students’ engagement and academic achievement in science subject. Multimedia instruction refers to combination of words, such as spoken explanations or written text, with visual elements like, images, animations, diagrams and videos. The basic aim for teaching with multimedia is that students tend to and comprehend, remember and understand concepts better when information is presented through both words and visuals rather than words alone. The study was conducted on 164 students form grade six, seven, eight and ten in a private school of Karachi, A quasi-experimental research design was used, where each group was taught two science topics: one through the traditional lecture method and the other through multimedia-supported instruction. To measure learning outcomes, achievement tests were administered after each teaching method, while a questionnaire was used to gather students’ perceptions of the two approaches. Results from paired-sample t-tests indicated significantly higher student scores with multimedia-supported instruction, particularly in Grade 8. ANOVA analysis further showed significant within- and between-group differences. Student questionnaire responses were consistently positive across all grades, reporting that multimedia aids improved understanding, retention, teacher interaction, and engagement. Overall, well-designed multimedia teaching appears more effective than traditional lectures in enhancing learning and fostering an interactive classroom.

The Time, Memory, and Mortality in Philip larkin’s Poetry

Rehan Aslam Sahi — 2026-01-02

The question of time, memory and mortality prevails in the poetical writing of Philip Larkin and
in this case, they remain in the central position within his literary imagination. These issues are
discussed in this paper by reading almost beside Aubade (1977) and Dockery and Son (1964) two
poems which can be perceived as various but complementary to the fact of human finiteness.
Aubade articulates an unsparing philosophy of death, which lacks the religious faith and
metaphysical reassurance, when compared to Dockery and Son who ponder the choices and the
missed possibilities which form the life in the perspective of the memory and the time. This is where
these poems are put within the larger context of the poetic oeuvre of Larkin and within discussion
with critical readings which is the essence of this argument; that Larkin constructs a poetics of
finitude that does not find meaning in transcendence but in an undress approach to time. This
discussion shows how Larkin utilizes time and mortality to communicate with the larger discourse
of existentialism in the twentieth century, making him timeless as a poet who speaks of the
universal fear in raw and uncouth terms, and with words and sentiments that are culturally tone
felt.