Preamble

The right to education is entrenched in Article 25 A of the Constitution of Pakistan. Following the 18^th amendment, education has largely become a provincial subject and each province has made progress in reforming its education systems. This blog presents the current situation of Pakistan’s education system and what needs to be done to improve it.

Research Questions

1. What is the current state of education in Pakistan?

2. What are the challenges associated with education in Pakistan?

3. What can be done to improve the education system?

Introduction

Education lays the foundation for the political, social, and economic development of a country. A viable education system not only helps a nation in achieving its national goals, but it also creates a sense of collective responsibility among people to enhance their role as proactive citizens. In the field of education, change usually involves developing four types of capacities, i.e., human, organizational, structural, and material. Unfortunately, in Pakistan, institutions responsible for delivering quality education suffer from all the above capacity challenges. Pakistan is a developing country and many challenges in diverse areas make it difficult for the country to provide a uniform and inclusive education to all. Political turmoil, expanding terrorism, social instability, and economic degeneration, all have contributed to the decline of the education sector. Therefore, it is imperative to reform the education system of Pakistan by increasing the capacity of educational institutions and framework.

Pakistan’s Education System: An Overview

Pakistan faces a multitude of socio-economic problems such as poverty, insecurity, sectarianism, and terrorism. The reasons for these problems can be found in lack of tolerance, lack of general awareness, illiteracy, and most importantly, an ineffective education system. Problems associated with the education system of Pakistan stem from a lack of adequate budget, poor policy implementation, a defective examination system, poor physical facilities, lack of quality teachers, political interference, an outdated curriculum, and a lack of uniformity. Steps have been taken to strengthen the facilities and services for primary, middle, and secondary schools, and towards the expansion of the non-formal education sector, but major issues and challenges continue to hinder the end goals from being achieved. As of 2018, the population of Pakistan stands at 208 million out of which 43 percent of adults are illiterate (NIPS, 2018). The situation becomes more alarming when out of this 43 percent, 51 percent are women compared to just 31 percent of men (Jeeva, 2020). More than 90 percent of the annual budget for education is used to pay teacher and administrative salaries. Further insights in the system paint a grim picture on the country’s aspirations to provide education for all. There are 51 million children in Pakistan between the age of 5 and 16 years who are out of school (UNICEF, 2020). There is also a shortage of schools wherein, for every 13 primary schools, there is just one middle school. Also, there is an acute shortage of quality teachers where 50 percent of primary schools in Balochistan and 29 per cent in Pakistan, have only one teacher. Put together, these statistics and facts are reflective of two central issues at the heart of Pakistan’s educational crisis, existing educational paradigms are failing students and there is an understandable deficit in the faith and trust people place in the education system of Pakistan. (Asian Development Bank, 2019)

Six Recommendations for Future Growth

There is hope that the education system can improve if certain measures are taken. Considering that 33 percent of all education is provided by the private sector, it is necessary to foster public-private partnerships to enhance the existing public educational framework. The first step in the process should be to provide support to academia by developing a syllabus based on the National Curriculum of Pakistan. Achievable student outcomes should be preferred by clearly defining the takeaways from each topic on any given subject. Secondly, the quality assurance process of examination development is necessary. Exams should be aligned with the syllabus and guarantee fairness with a linear increase in difficulty. Processes should be developed to evaluate if a certain exam is measuring a student’s ability or is based on rote memorization only. Thirdly, there is a need to ensure fairness and transparency in the conduct of examinations. Technology can and should be utilised for this purpose to eliminate impersonation, cheating, and leakage of examination papers. Fourthly, the quality of teaching and learning must be improved by introducing rigorous teacher training programs based on modern techniques of pedagogy and developing a system of feedback for the teachers to evaluate their own methods. Fifthly, it is highly necessary to build engaging classrooms as teachers play a vital role in translating the curriculum into learning outcomes. Engaging classrooms also increase student interest and participation in the subject matter. Lastly, a large amount of data acquired through assessment is a good source of conducting quantitative research for developing insights into how the system approaches learning. This can then be utilised to make informed decisions based on matters such as identifying gaps, learning from mistakes, and developing intervention strategies.

Conclusion

A unique, holistic, and innovative approach toward educational development is vital for its reform and success. At the heart of this model lies research, which is used to make informed decisions. Through this approach, the education system can gain back its lost credibility and move the nation towards socio-economic prosperity. Ultimately, the most important factor towards the improvement of education in Pakistan is a collaborative effort on multiple levels between different stakeholders.

Key Takeaways

1. A viable education system not only helps a nation in achieving its national goals, it also creates a sense of collective responsibility among people to enhance their role as proactive citizens.

2. In the field of education, change usually involves developing four types of capacities, i.e., human, organizational, structural, and material.

3. Pakistan is a developing country and many challenges in diverse areas make it difficult for the country to provide a uniform and inclusive education to all.

4. As of 2018, the population of Pakistan stands at 208 million out of which 43 percent of adults are illiterate (NIPS, 2018). The situation becomes more alarming when out of this 43 percent, 51 percent are women compared to just 31 percent of men (Jeeva, 2020).

5. More than 90 per cent of the annual budget for education is used to pay teacher and administrative salaries.

6. There are 51 million children in Pakistan between the age of 5 and 16 years who are out of school (UNICEF, 2020).

Bibliography

Asian Development Bank. (2019). School Education in Pakistan.

Jeeva, S. (2020). Steps towards Improving the Quality of Pakistan’s Education System. Retrieved from The Reformer: https://www.reformer.pakistanascd.org/steps-towards-improving-the-quality-of-pakistans-education-system/

NIPS. (2018). Demographic and Health Survey. National Institute of Population Studies.

UNICEF. (2020). Education. Retrieved from UNICEF Pakistan: https://www.unicef.org/pakistan/education