Feature:China'stechnologicalsupporttransformshighereducationinPakistan_GuangmingOnlineISLAMABAD,March19(Xinhua)--Inaremotesub-campusofMandiBahauddininPakistan'seastPunjabprovince,SaimaNoreen,astudentofmanagementsciences,attendedacomprehensivelectureonbusinesscommunicationfromaveteranprofessorwhodeliveredatthemaincampusoftheUniversityofGujratinthenewlyinauguratedsmartclassroom."Throughthesmartclassroom,studentsinremoteareas,likeme,aregainingaccesstolecturesfromseasonedprofessorsatthemaincampusoftheuniversity,andthenewlyintroducedclassroomsareagreathelptoenrichouracademicjourney,"NoreentoldXinhua.Atotalof100classrooms,liketheoneonNoreen'scampus,havebeendonatedbythegovernmentandpeopleofChinatofacilitatedistancelearninginPakistan,andthestate-of-the-artfacilityhasgarneredwidespreadappreciationforitsmyriadbenefits,enhancingthelearningexperienceforstudentsacrossPakistan.Eachclassroomencompassesacomprehensivearrayofresources,includinge-learningmodules,virtualdesktops,interactivewhiteboards,classroomcontrolsystems,livevirtualclassrooms,interactivedisplays,andaninnovativecontrolcenter.TheHigherEducationCommission(HEC)ofPakistanrecentlyinauguratedclassroomsacrossthecountry,markingasignificantmilestoneastheceremonywasanovelexperienceforthestudentsofabout90campusesnationwide.Noreensaidthedigitalinitiativerepresentsadeparturefromconventionalpracticesandhighlightsthegrowingintegrationoftechnologyineducation,whichfostersasenseofconnectivityamongstudentsfromvariouslocationss."Inthefuture,IwouldliketoattendalecturefromaseasonedprofessorinsomeChineseuniversitiesthroughmysmartclassroom,asitprovidesmewithanopportunitytonotonlygetconnectedwithinPakistanbutalsototheworldoutside,"sheadded.TalkingtoXinhuaaboutthesmartclassroom,JamilAhmad,thetopofficialofinformationtechnologyintheHEC,saidtheclassroomswilltransformtheeducationsectorofPakistanashundredsofthousandsofstudentsattendlecturesthroughthemeverymonth."EveryPakistaniknowsthatthemainaimoftheChina-PakistanEconomicCorridor(CPEC)istoupliftPakistan'seconomy,andeconomicprosperitycannotbeachievedwithoutqualityeducation,sothesesmartclassroomsareverysignificantforthebrightfutureofPakistan,"Ahmadsaid.Theseclassroomsarerolemodels,andinthenextphase,theHECwillexpandthemtoover1,000campusesacrossthecountry,andstudentsinremoteareaswillbeabletogeteducationfromfamousexpertsandprofessorsinbigcitiesthroughtheclassroomscreens,headded.TheSmartClassroomrepresentsaparadigmshiftineducationaltechnology,asitisdesignedtostrengthenthebondbetweeneducatorsandlearnersintherealmofonlineeducation,Ahmadsaid."Theclassroomalsohelpsuscutthecostinmanyuniversitiesassometimesforsomevisitingfacultywecanhireonlyoneteacherwhocanteachonmorethanonecampusthroughtheclassroomscreen,andbecauseofitslatesttechnology,itgivesstudentsanexperienceasiftheteacherisstandingrightinfrontofthem,andtheycanaskanyquestionfromhimandviceversa,"theofficialadded.Pakistanistudents,teachersandofficialsbelievethattheinaugurationofsmartclassroomsintheircountrywiththehelpofChinarepresentsasignificantstridetowardbridgingeducationalgaps,empoweringstudentswithcutting-edgeresources,andfosteringacollaborativeandtechnologically-drivenlearningenvironment.Launchedin2013,CPEC,aflagshipprojectundertheChina-proposedBeltandRoadInitiative,isacorridorlinkingPakistan'ssouthwestGwadarportwithKashgarinnorthwestChina'sXinjiangUygurAutonomousRegion,highlightingenergy,transport,andindustrialcooperation.■Editor:DisclaimerTheviewsandopinionsexpressedinthisarticlearethoseoftheauthor's,GMW.cnmakesnorepresentationsastoaccuracy,suitability,orvalidityofanyinformationonthissiteandwillnotbeliableforanyerrors,omissions,ordelaysinthisinformation.