Notre Dame Institute of Education was opened on 1st October, 1991, at the initiative of Bishop Anthony Lobo, then auxiliary Bishop of Karachi, and under the auspices of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Pakistan. The need to raise standards of education in Pakistan has long been recognized and stressed by Pakistani educational authorities, by Governments and by outside Institutions (e.g. the Uni
ted Nations). It is universally accepted by educators, both Church and Government, that it is the education and training of teachers, which must take top priority in improving the quality of education in the country. Bishop Lobo saw the need for a degree-granting institution which could also serve as a pace-setter cultivating the highest academic standards and developing modern approaches to teaching. Australian Sisters of Mercy began working in Pakistan in 1985 under the leadership of Sister Elizabeth Cloonan RSM, formerly Vice Principal of Mercy Campus, Institute of Catholic Education, Victoria. She advised Bishop Lobo to seek Australian assistance for the project. Subsequently, in consultation with the Bishop, Dr. Deirdre Jordan RSM, Chancellor of Flinders University approached Australian academics and teachers, including the Sisters of Mercy, for volunteers. Two Sisters of Mercy took up the invitation and accepted responsibility for the development of the project for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Pakistan. Over the years, they were joined by other Australian volunteers, lay and religious, particularly Sisters of Mercy of the Australian Institute. An increasing number of NDIE graduates are now employed on the Institute staff. NDIE students have been position holders at the Karachi University B.Ed annual examinations.
