Reinventing Tech Education in Pakistan

If you only listen to one episode of a podcast this month, make it this one.

In the debut episode of the podcast In Sync with Her on Radio LUMS, hosts Javeria and Sana speak with Code School co-founder Sadaf Rehman - a woman whose work sits at the intersection of tech, education, and social change. But what makes this conversation stand out is not the awards or the buzzwords - it’s how quietly radical Sadaf’s story is. She doesn’t posture. She doesn’t package her ideas into tidy slogans. Instead, she offers something rarer: an honest, systems-level perspective grounded in lived experience.

1. What Happens When You Grow Up Before the Internet - and Then Help Rewrite What Kids Learn After It?

Sadaf is a digital immigrant - being born pre-Internet, she didn’t grow up with smartphones or coding bootcamps. Her early exposure to tech came from a household that was - quite literally - wired differently. Her father, a programmer in the 70s, helped make theirs one of the first 50 homes in Pakistan to get residential internet. But that’s not a flex. It’s context.

“This concept of women in STEM just didn't exist. The women in my graduating batch who built a career in tech have done it outside of Pakistan.”

Despite that rare access, she didn’t see tech as a viable career. She had no role models, no roadmap, and no desire to settle for IT support jobs in multinationals. That dissonance - between early exposure and a complete absence of belonging - is what ultimately shaped her work. She wasn’t interested in chasing tech for its own sake. She wanted to redesign the systems that push girls out before they even begin.

2. A Coding Class Should Feel Like Play

One of the most pointed moments in the episode is when Sadaf recalls learning Logo as a child - not because of the language itself, but because of how it made her feel: curious, powerful, playful. Today, she says, that sense of joy has all but disappeared. Coding in schools has become something kids dread - if it's even done at all.

“It’s become a dry, drill-based subject. Kids dread it the way they used to dread math.”

That insight directly shaped how she built Code School. The curriculum centers on game-building, creativity, and play - not worksheets or syntax memorization. The point isn’t just to teach kids how to code. It’s to show them that coding is a tool for making things they care about. In a world obsessed with outcomes, Sadaf’s approach puts delight back into learning.

3. School Doesn’t Work for Everyone

Sadaf speaks candidly about her co-founder and brother, Asad, who taught himself to code in C as a preteen - but struggled through school. He was the kind of student who struggled with grades despite being so brilliant - the system had no place for someone like him, and it showed.

"School is built for test-takers, not for children who don't fit hte mould.”

That lived experience of watching brilliance get punished by rigidity shaped how Code School approaches talent. They don’t look at degrees. They don’t hire based on name-brand universities. Instead, they test technical skill, motivation, and fit. And they’ve found that some of their strongest instructors are young, nontraditional candidates.

4. Winning Awards Didn’t Cure Her Imposter Syndrome

Despite Code School winning several major startup competitions, including Stanford SEED Spark, Visa She’s Next Award and TiE women, Sadaf says she didn’t actually believe she knew how to pitch until she won the fourth one. That level of self-doubt doesn’t come from lack of skill - it comes from years of being told that the work only counts if someone else says it does.

“It took the fourth win for me to think - oh maybe I do know how to do this,” she admits.

This wasn’t a pep talk moment. It was a mirror. The episode captures the gap between external validation and internal confidence that many women in tech understand all too well. Sadaf doesn’t pretend to have it all figured out - and that’s exactly what makes her so compelling to listen to.

5. Tech Education in Pakistan Is Based on Her Work

In one of the most substantial parts of the episode, Sadaf explains how she helped lead a complete rewrite of Pakistan’s national computer science curriculum a major milestone for tech education in Pakistan. She and her team brought in domain experts from around the world - all volunteers - to shape a syllabus that includes AI, generative tools, safe search, and digital citizenship.

“The last curriculum was written in 2006. We brought in domain experts from around the world to volunteer to author a curriculum that would help shape the next generation of Pakistani kids”

But the real challenge wasn’t technical. It was political. Because of Pakistan’s 18th Amendment, education is a provincial matter. Every province had to review, edit, and approve the curriculum. That process took years. And now, even with formal adoption, the battle is far from over - implementation is still the uphill climb.

6. Her Advice for Women in STEM Is Simple and Personal

The episode ends on a quieter note, as Sadaf reflects on how the next generation is growing up with better language for self-worth. She sees the shift - from silence and martyrdom to confidence and self-advocacy - but she’s clear that the work isn’t over. Her advice isn’t motivational fluff. It’s grounded in hard-won clarity.

“You’re the one who will live with the consequences of your choices. So choose what you believe is right.”

And finally, when asked about her favorite part of being a woman?

“Being a mom.”It’s a gentle reminder that identity doesn’t need to be either/or.

Takeaway: This is not a flashy tech founder. Sadaf Rehman is someone who builds quietly and intentionally, who challenges broken systems without posturing, and who’s somehow made coding feel deeply human.

If you care about what your kids are learning, or what they could be learning, her story is well worth your time.

Listen to the full episode of In Sync with Her - now streaming on Radio LUMS channel on YouTube.