Islamabad
Although the subject of education has been devolved to provinces after the 18th Amendment yet the problems that kept education system shadowed throughout are still intact making it impossible to acquire the required literacy rate and quality education.
Lethargic bureaucracy, imbalance in education, massive population growth, education conscription, curriculum and lack of resources are few of the factors identified by the educationists that are hindering the way to progress in the education sector.
METU alumni and educationalist Arshad Jamil termed bureaucracy as the core of Pakistan’s education crises. “Our additional handicap is its composition from 14 years private arts graduates, with very few professionals in science, engineering and management. One illustration of incompetence and incapability of our education bureaucrats is, that it returns back 30 per cent or more of allocated meagre funds unspent,” he remarked while talking to ‘The News’.
He said that massive funding infusion goes waste occasionally, with half built construction or unfurnished schools left to the elements. “It missed the opportunity of previous government’s huge funding commitments for new technical universities,” he said.
He said that bureaucrats spend most of their time and energy on personnel transfers, leaves and not for real education. “There is the dire need for the workaholic dedicated education ministers for provinces. Each minister should assemble a team of motivated outside professionals, who should concentrate on education, good teaching and discipline. Projects like boundary walls, drinking water, and electricity should be postponed, in favour of good teaching,” he said.
The educationalists believe that Pakistan need to abandon policy fixation for Universal Primary Education (UPE). Education enrolment keeps dropping drastically with higher grades, thus not able to produce enough teachers. Grade 5th enrolment standing at 64 per cent and 50 per cent passing should not surprise us, with just one or two teachers in 65 per cent of public primary schools.
They believe that UPE is not achievable even in next 40 years. Neither would our primary education bring any social gains nor improved health or population control. On the higher education, we are producing aimlessly private and open university arts graduates and MAs of low standards, not useful for job market, or to support development.
According to a recently published report ‘Education Emergency in Pakistan’, the MDG for education is now out of reach for Pakistan. As the United Nations recently reminded governments, all of today’s primary age children would need to have started school by 2009, if they are to complete their studies.
The Pakistan government accepts there is now too much to be done, in too short a time, to meet MDG. The report said that the realization that the targets will not be met does not deter the government from working to achieve the target rather it spurs it on to rectify the shortfalls and to make the commitment, that it will move as close to the targets for 2015, as it possibly can.
Pakistan Education Task Force Chairperson Shahnaz Wazir Ali accepts that Pakistan needs to get away with its fixation on MDG, as they have not been set according to the circumstances of Pakistan. “While setting MDGs, it was not kept under consideration that which country was at what stage and what should be the realistic targets to be achieved according to the circumstances of each country. She said that it was not only the budget that is required to improve the state of education in the country, but it is better management and better governance, which is required.
She said that the state of education is different in every part of the country so is the need in education sector. “The province high enrolment rate must be having the goal of improving the quality of education being imparted in that province while the other province which is having a low enrolment rate must be looking for the ways through which more and more children could be brought to school,” she added.
She said that public representatives should take special interest in education sector besides the fact that the political interference in hiring teachers and principals should come to an end. “We have our goals written in the National Education Policy (NEP) and we should strive to achieve them instead of following any other ambitious goals,” she added.
She said that Pakistan needs balanced goals for primary, secondary, vocational, high school and university education. Pakistan needs more university education in science, engineering, finance, and management, to support developmental projects, spur growth, and create jobs.
One of the key factors that have been identified by educationalists and by different reports is the population growth of Pakistan at 2.3 per cent. At 31 per 1,000 birth rate and discounting other factors, we need now 120,000 new classrooms and 120,000 additional teachers for 3.5 million new children. Coming years, the numbers would keep compounding. Our population growth needs to be controlled. It is every citizen’s responsibility to think, ponder, and help control population, and not wait for solutions from others.
Another educationalist Ismat Riaz believes that education conscription is the need for Pakistan, like defence conscription in some countries, to be made up of those wanting to leave the country after getting educated, and of female graduates not working.
“What is the use of elitist institutions, if their graduates leave the country, settle abroad, and never send back even a single penny to the country? It becomes a national concern, if many graduates of O&A level exams, leave the country, and not return, while burdening the national exchequer for huge funding transfer. These are the cream of the country, and cause brain drain for the country,” Ismat remarked.
Ismat Riaz said that the curriculum development is the need of the hour. “We waste our energies on trivial matters like teaching of theology and ideology; instead of focus on mathematics, science and languages,” she said.
While suggesting the better utilisation of existing resources, she said that ‘Mohalla Training Centres’ could be housed in existing schools during off time or in a one room rented space, doubling for living. “Mohallah Training Centres are required for a very large group of population without any education or skill. This group is a fall-out from the narrow attention towards UPE, growing up without any schooling or vocation skills. This must now be addressed with a simple mass scale low cost programme of basic skill development, by teaching them few simple skills, basic hygiene and civic sense,” she suggested.
The educationists believe in optimising resources of existing education facilities. “We need the facilities at our universities to function and all personnel utilised fully. We cannot afford departments with very few students in one university, and similar in another. We cannot afford classrooms and labs used for few hours only. By optimising utilisation of human and facilities resources, the Pakistani universities can also enhance enrolment,” said an educationist.
According to educationalists, urgent steps are required for the quality and balanced education, which helps in nation building, economic development, improvement in social and civic values, tolerance in society, better health, hygiene, population control, peace and
Although the subject of education has been devolved to provinces after the 18th Amendment yet the problems that kept education system shadowed throughout are still intact making it impossible to acquire the required literacy rate and quality education.
Lethargic bureaucracy, imbalance in education, massive population growth, education conscription, curriculum and lack of resources are few of the factors identified by the educationists that are hindering the way to progress in the education sector.
METU alumni and educationalist Arshad Jamil termed bureaucracy as the core of Pakistan’s education crises. “Our additional handicap is its composition from 14 years private arts graduates, with very few professionals in science, engineering and management. One illustration of incompetence and incapability of our education bureaucrats is, that it returns back 30 per cent or more of allocated meagre funds unspent,” he remarked while talking to ‘The News’.
He said that massive funding infusion goes waste occasionally, with half built construction or unfurnished schools left to the elements. “It missed the opportunity of previous government’s huge funding commitments for new technical universities,” he said.
He said that bureaucrats spend most of their time and energy on personnel transfers, leaves and not for real education. “There is the dire need for the workaholic dedicated education ministers for provinces. Each minister should assemble a team of motivated outside professionals, who should concentrate on education, good teaching and discipline. Projects like boundary walls, drinking water, and electricity should be postponed, in favour of good teaching,” he said.
The educationalists believe that Pakistan need to abandon policy fixation for Universal Primary Education (UPE). Education enrolment keeps dropping drastically with higher grades, thus not able to produce enough teachers. Grade 5th enrolment standing at 64 per cent and 50 per cent passing should not surprise us, with just one or two teachers in 65 per cent of public primary schools.
They believe that UPE is not achievable even in next 40 years. Neither would our primary education bring any social gains nor improved health or population control. On the higher education, we are producing aimlessly private and open university arts graduates and MAs of low standards, not useful for job market, or to support development.
According to a recently published report ‘Education Emergency in Pakistan’, the MDG for education is now out of reach for Pakistan. As the United Nations recently reminded governments, all of today’s primary age children would need to have started school by 2009, if they are to complete their studies.
The Pakistan government accepts there is now too much to be done, in too short a time, to meet MDG. The report said that the realization that the targets will not be met does not deter the government from working to achieve the target rather it spurs it on to rectify the shortfalls and to make the commitment, that it will move as close to the targets for 2015, as it possibly can.
Pakistan Education Task Force Chairperson Shahnaz Wazir Ali accepts that Pakistan needs to get away with its fixation on MDG, as they have not been set according to the circumstances of Pakistan. “While setting MDGs, it was not kept under consideration that which country was at what stage and what should be the realistic targets to be achieved according to the circumstances of each country. She said that it was not only the budget that is required to improve the state of education in the country, but it is better management and better governance, which is required.
She said that the state of education is different in every part of the country so is the need in education sector. “The province high enrolment rate must be having the goal of improving the quality of education being imparted in that province while the other province which is having a low enrolment rate must be looking for the ways through which more and more children could be brought to school,” she added.
She said that public representatives should take special interest in education sector besides the fact that the political interference in hiring teachers and principals should come to an end. “We have our goals written in the National Education Policy (NEP) and we should strive to achieve them instead of following any other ambitious goals,” she added.
She said that Pakistan needs balanced goals for primary, secondary, vocational, high school and university education. Pakistan needs more university education in science, engineering, finance, and management, to support developmental projects, spur growth, and create jobs.
One of the key factors that have been identified by educationalists and by different reports is the population growth of Pakistan at 2.3 per cent. At 31 per 1,000 birth rate and discounting other factors, we need now 120,000 new classrooms and 120,000 additional teachers for 3.5 million new children. Coming years, the numbers would keep compounding. Our population growth needs to be controlled. It is every citizen’s responsibility to think, ponder, and help control population, and not wait for solutions from others.
Another educationalist Ismat Riaz believes that education conscription is the need for Pakistan, like defence conscription in some countries, to be made up of those wanting to leave the country after getting educated, and of female graduates not working.
“What is the use of elitist institutions, if their graduates leave the country, settle abroad, and never send back even a single penny to the country? It becomes a national concern, if many graduates of O&A level exams, leave the country, and not return, while burdening the national exchequer for huge funding transfer. These are the cream of the country, and cause brain drain for the country,” Ismat remarked.
Ismat Riaz said that the curriculum development is the need of the hour. “We waste our energies on trivial matters like teaching of theology and ideology; instead of focus on mathematics, science and languages,” she said.
While suggesting the better utilisation of existing resources, she said that ‘Mohalla Training Centres’ could be housed in existing schools during off time or in a one room rented space, doubling for living. “Mohallah Training Centres are required for a very large group of population without any education or skill. This group is a fall-out from the narrow attention towards UPE, growing up without any schooling or vocation skills. This must now be addressed with a simple mass scale low cost programme of basic skill development, by teaching them few simple skills, basic hygiene and civic sense,” she suggested.
The educationists believe in optimising resources of existing education facilities. “We need the facilities at our universities to function and all personnel utilised fully. We cannot afford departments with very few students in one university, and similar in another. We cannot afford classrooms and labs used for few hours only. By optimising utilisation of human and facilities resources, the Pakistani universities can also enhance enrolment,” said an educationist.
According to educationalists, urgent steps are required for the quality and balanced education, which helps in nation building, economic development, improvement in social and civic values, tolerance in society, better health, hygiene, population control, peace and
