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This paper documents the development of a "grassroots" teacher professional development model from Pakistan and region designed around three critical aspects: (a) the impact on classroom teaching and learning, (b) the provision for capacity building, and (c) a mechanism for ongoing support and sustainability. The development and evolution of the innovation is presented in terms of three stages designed to increase the angle of educational reform through total school improvement. The implications of the model as a promising prototype are discussed in relation to the wider professional development needs of teachers in the developing world.

Teacher education in developing countries faces great challenges attributable to economic constraints, including shrinking resources, the low status of teachers—exacerbated by declining incentives—and an entirely theoretical approach in teacher training programs. These challenges are further intensified by variations in the trainees’ cultural, regional, and religious backgrounds and by the lack of collaboration between different education sectors. In this context, the Aga Khan University Institute for Educational Development (AKU-IED) in Karachi, Pakistan, is attempting to provide contextually appropriate, effective teacher education programs for Pakistan and other developing countries. This article draws on the authors’ personal experiences in the teacher education programs at AKU-IED and on studies that examine the impact of these programs on participants. Several studies show that teacher education transforms teachers’ beliefs and practices if accomplished through more effective approaches. The article discusses how teacher education programs are conceptualized and implemented in the multicultural context of AKU-IED, where the course participants come from various developing countries and diverse backgrounds.

Harmen van Paradijs, the publishing editor, for their assistance in the production process. Finally, we wish to thank the many students who shared their perspectives and words with researchers toward the shared goal of better understanding and supporting student learning in school.We wish to thank as well State University of New York Press for permission to reproduce excerpts from chapter four in Listening to Urban Kids (2001), the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, publishers of Educational Leadership, for permission to reproduce excerpts from "Do Students Care About Learning?" (Corbett & Wilson, 2002); and Teachers College Press for permission to reproduce excerpts from Corbett, Wilson, and Williams (2002), Effort and Excellence in Urban Classrooms: Expectingand Getting-Success with All Students.