7/12/2021 Education — a strategic imperative - Daily Times

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Ahmad Zafar OP-ED

Education — a strategic imperative

Ahmad Zafar 0
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JULY 12, 2021

To say education is important is an understatement. Historically, an enlightened education has been one of

the constants of every successful civilization. From Athenian and Roman civilization to the Muslim and
modern western civilization, there is not even a single exception that progressed without an enlightened
education. Pakistan is certainly not an outlier either. To have lasting sustainable growth in Pakistan, the
need for a modern and equipped education is an inescapable conclusion from history.

Currently, the education system in Pakistan is a tale of unfulfilled expectations and regressive growth.
Article 25-A, after the 18th Amendment, ensures the right of free basic education for every Pakistani
citizen in the age bracket of 5-16. However, when there are 22.8 million (44% of that age bracket – second
highest in the world) instances of violation to this article each day, who will intervene to prevent this?
Rhetorically, do provinces have the capacity to fill such a huge gap in policy commitment and actual
implementation?

The challenges in the education sector in Pakistan are quite multifaceted. Even within the current capacity
of budgetary allocation and infrastructure, the problems in this sector are deep-rooted. Firstly, the divisive,
highly regulated and agenda-based curriculum is destroying the innovative capability of students rather
than nurturing it. Recently, the invitation to religious clerics by the government to regulate the contents in
biology textbooks certainly shows a regressive scientific growth.

Moreover, the wish to preserve the past (by the glorified stories of old-school warriors like Salahuddin LATEST NEWS

Ayubi or Ertugrul) rather than the hope to ensuring a bright future dominates the minds of educators. In the
words of Bertrand Russell, such a curriculum endeavors to form habits and circumscribe knowledge in Maryam Nawaz lands
such a way as to make one set of opinions inevitable. Pervasive intolerance, impatience, and jingoism in herself in awkward position

Pakistan are the inevitable results of having such a curriculum. following twitter blunder

NEPRA notifies 26 paisa

”
reduction in power tariff for
Pakistan’s education system is a tale of unfulfilled expectations and May
regressive growth
Police close to arresting
two more suspects in
Secondly, based on transmission rather than transformation, the pedagogical standards are quite outdated Usman Mirza case

and detrimental, thereby making schools the houses of detention, not attention. Unfortunately, the schools
Arooj Aftab makes it to
here even lack walls to have blackboards, while the world has now shifted to smart boards and 3D
Obama’s summer playlist
demonstrations in classes.

Thirdly, the worm-eaten and outdated system of recall-based assessment is still prevalent. Such a system Mahira Khan talks about
body image issues, secret
hinders the growth of critical analysis among students, the trait that Will Durant rated as the ultimate
marriage and more
desirable goal of education. No wonder this system generates a highly susceptible and agreeable
generation that lacks basic curiosity, the cornerstone of creativity and innovation.
PAKISTAN

NEPRA notifies 26 paisa

reduction in power tariff for
May

Police close to arresting

two more suspects in
Usman Mirza case

Above all, as recently highlighted by Moeed Yousaf, there are three parallel and largely disconnected Arooj Aftab makes it to
education systems; public and non-elite schools, elite private schools, and religious seminaries, engaging Obama’s summer playlist
67%, 28.7%, and 4.3% of the total student body, respectively. Consequentially the divergent outlooks, with
hugely disparate future inspirations among these three cohorts, make it virtually impossible to forge a
Punjab govt following zero
consensus on any issue of national or international importance. They say education is a greater equalizer,
tolerance policy against
which apparently does not seem to be the case. land-grabbers: Babar Hayat
Tarar
Lastly, the political instability and lack of national consensus on educational policies in Pakistan have
caused the sector to be the victim of short-termism and isomorphic mimicry (choosing ‘form’ over actual PSX holds Gong ceremony
to mark listing of Citi
functional performance) just to win the game of having more inauguration stone boards.
Pharma

Since the challenges are multipronged, the solutions need to be overarching. Even after the 18th More Posts from this Category
amendment, the federation should still act as a co-guarantor of equitable education across provinces. A
federal-level policy framework should be devised to incentivize provinces through a premium on the NFC
BUSINESS
Award conditioned on educational achievements. Such an approach can help the federal government to
alleviate the disparities across genders, rural-urban differences, and provincial gaps in education access.
Gold prices decrease by Rs
450 to Rs108,850 per tola
Secondly, a holistic intervention is required to change curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment
methodologies simultaneously. Just like the national action plan, the political and non-political institutions
should have a national consensus on educational policies; applicable across governments. Ryanair to hire 2,000 new pilots on Covid
recovery

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7/12/2021 Education — a strategic imperative - Daily Times

Thirdly, to ensure maximum enrolment in primary and secondary classes, each province should devise
incentivization plans. One such possibility is conditional cash transfer program. Various countries like
Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil have already successfully tested such a program.
Rupee depreciates 19
In the context of Pakistan, such an initiative can be incorporated with the running projects like the ‘Ehsaas’ paisas, closes at 159.36
programme with an established database.

Vietnam’s Vinfast to launch

Lastly, Pakistan needs to see the immediate future as an emergency-based corrective phase to bridge the
electric cars in US, Europe
gap between the theoretical policy framework and actual implementation. A laser-focused national effort is next year
required to revamp this worm-eaten education system to achieve a unified, coherent, and integrated
national education policy. EU puts digital tax plan ‘on
hold’ during OECD talks

Currently, the education system is creating more problems rather than providing solutions for the
marginalization, deprivation, and radicalization among the youth. And being a country with such a huge
More Posts from this Category
youth bulge virtually directs towards a survival threat for Pakistan.

WORLD
In essence, the educational advancement should be treated as a strategic imperative rather than just an
optional development priority. For Asia is in the midst of geographical transition and now steadily
recovering from Covid-19, the investment in education and human capital is the only chance for Pakistan Top US general in
Afghanistan relinquishes
to rise like a phoenix from its ashes.
command

The writer is a freelance columnist Moldova pro-Europeans win

resounding election victory
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