Perception of Working Mothers on Child Development: A Qualitative Study from Pakistan

The inclusion of women in the workforce is imperative for the advancement of every country in the world. In Pakistan the role of women is undergoing dynamic transformation which can have considerable influence on the mother-child relationship and child development. This research attempts to understand the influence of out-of-home maternal employment on the development of child, as perceived by mothers. The study is qualitative in nature using snowball sampling. A total of six working mothers were interviewed from Lahore, Pakistan. Thematic analysis technique has been used to analyze the data. The following themes were identified: (i) Child Neglect; (ii) Strained Child-Parent Relationship; (iii) Child Aggression; (iv) Low Academic Achievement; and (v) Independence and Sense of Responsibility. The study concludes that working mothers need family and employer support to ensure child development in Pakistan. Some of the key reforms that are needed include respect for women’s triple role in society and employment benefits for working mothers.

Comparative Efficacy of Different Maize Zea Mays L . Genotypes for Acquistion and Utilization of Iron and Zinc under Saline Conditions

This study was designed to examine the relationship of classroom learning environment and Teacher Interaction with secondary school students’ attitude towards the learning of English Language in context of Pakistan. Classroom environment is considered as one of the influential factor in enhancing learners’ achievement, attitude and learning process. The objectives of the study were to investigate secondary level students’ English language classroom learning environment, teachers’ interaction in English language classes and attitude towards learning of English language. Moreover, the relationship of classroom learning environment and teacher interaction with secondary level students’ attitude towards the learning of English on gender and locale was also established in the study. The study at hand was co relational and descriptive. For data collection survey method was used. Multistage stratified random sampling technique was used for sample selection of the study. Stratification was based on three geographic zones of Punjab: Northern, Central and Southern Punjab. One district from each zone was selected randomly. The sample of the study was 930 students from 03 districts of the Punjab. Three instruments were used, first for Classroom learning environment, second for discovering Teacher Interaction in English language classes and third for finding out students’ attitude towards learning of English language. Data for this study were analyzed by using statistical operations through SPSS. T-test was used to calculate the significant difference between means of different categories of respondents like rural & urban, male and female. To investigate the possible relationship among the variables, Pearson correlation was used. Results of the study showed that male and female respondents reflected significant differences on English language classroom learning environment, teacher interaction and attitude towards English. It further revealed that female respondents were more favorable on their classroom learning environment, get more teachers’ support and interaction than male in their English language classes and had more positive attitude towards the learning of English. Significant positive correlation was found among classroom learning environment, Teacher Interaction and attitude towards the learning of English. Findings suggest that positive attitude in a foreign language class can be developed by making learning environment more favorable in shape of better pupil-teacher relationships and teacher support, involvement, cooperation and equity. It may help in developing attitude towards Adoption of English language learning attitude and enjoyment of English lessons in the classroom.