Suggestions and comment on an excerpt (given below) from the draft National Education Policy, 2009

          There is no doubt that the Government has started to realize the significance of three factors in Education i.e. Teacher-Student-Material Taught. The whole situation revolves round these factors but the Government should come out with more pragmatic steps to materialize its Policy on Education for meeting the requirements of the people of Pakistan to bring the standard of Education in conformity with the rest of the World.

FIRST THE TEACHER: Who and how should be a teacher. What kinds of qualities he should have. What kind of Education he should have obtained before his appointment. What kind of pre-service and in-service trainings he should get. Above all who should evaluate the personal qualities of a teacher for his appointment? How long should be the probation period before his confirmation being a Teacher? Today, there a flood of criticism against the teachers of Government Schools in the whole Country. Everyone is expressing his ideas on the conduct and character of the teachers but no one has objectively analysed the real facts in which the teachers of the Government schools have been forced to serve. It has been admitted in the NEP 2009 that there is scarcity of resources in the Government Schools. Basic facilities of life are not available in the majority of the schools. I do not comment about the availability of water, electricity, furniture or boundary wall, but consider it essential to say that even classrooms are not available to the classes and the teachers along with the students are forced inside the school to sit either under the shadow of trees or other temporary arrangements are made for the protection of students from the sunlight. When either the dignitaries of village or Departmental Officers visit the school, they are shown the plight of the children and teachers but they just make promises like other politicians of the country and then never come back only for this reason that their own children go to such schools where every facility is available to them. Children are forced to sit on jute-mats in chilling winter season and the teacher is forced to sit on a half broken chair. Proforma after proforma relating to school requirements are filled in which the needs of the school are mentioned every year and sometime every month but the school remains on the same position where it was decades of years ago. If the teacher is matriculate or under-graduate and does not know any thing then who is responsible for bringing him to a school? Who had made the merit list, who had appointed him, who was supervising him so far? Who is responsible is responsible for the ghost schools, who is responsible for the furniture scandals, who is responsible for the misappropriation of the funds. In 1995 when I sent suggestions to the Chief Secretary, Government of N.W.F.P. regarding the separation of Teaching Cadre and Administrating Cadre officers, I was suspended, my salaries were stopped and enquiries were conducted into baseless allegations which were not proved and I was reinstated in service. The whole exercise was just to pressurise me to remain silent. Mr. Asif Shah was Secretary Education to the Government of NWFP.I met him for requesting him to conduct the enquiry into the irregularities in the medical disbursement, first he considered it against his grade, post and status that a Primary School Teacher has so boldly attended his office without any fear, tried to pressurise me but I told him that there was no doubt that I was a primary school teacher but that did not mean that he would cow down me. Mr. Shah Jahan was the Director of Education, he directed him to conduct an enquiry. I did not see the inquiry report or the consequences of my application for the enquiry. It is the bad luck of our poor nation, that if Pakistan gets loan, grant, aid that is in the name of the people of Pakistan but the Pakistani people only become debtors, the beneficiaries become someone else. The same is case with the Education, heavy amount is allocated in the Budget for the Education every year but the condition of the people is not improving. I think frequently what the policy makers and stalwarts of every department, of law enforcing agencies were doing that the terrorist have got full control of the affairs. We established the department of Police for our safety but now we should plan for establishing another department for the protection of Police. The Government Schools were functioning but they were lowered in the eyes of the people and establishment of private schools were allowed in the name of combating the illiteracy and producing qualified persons. Whether the Government or those who allowed the establishment of private schools with different curricula and system of Education got that standard for which the whole futile exercise was done. It was a big joke with this Country. In the last fifteen or twenty years the society was badly fragmented which created nothing but suicide attackers. There is big gulf between the Government and people which facilitated the job of the anti-Pakistan elements and I attribute the main to the diversity in the System of Education. We as Pakistanis have done nothing more extraordinary than blaming one another. No institution considers itself bound to perform that job for which that institution has been created. Political expediencies and lust for gaining more wealth and to usurp the rights of others has become fashion which at present has got violent shape. Only teacher is not responsible but every department, parents, political parties, Government stake-holders all are responsible for the deterioration of Education. What is the standard of Education and rate of literacy in the areas from where the terrorism and extremism is breeding? Who is responsible for this? The age-old rotten system of those areas is responsible where only a few officers rule like Kings the territories with the help of a few maliks and influential. The adverse effects of those areas are evident now in Islamabad, Lahore, Peshawar and other areas. Wet wood get fire due the presence of dry wood. Our so-called policy makers made the policies so far which resulted in such devastation.

SECOND THE STUDENT: What should be the age of student for admitting him in the school. Whether the students should be admitted to a class without undergoing their medical check up regarding their mental capacity.  Whether students should be segregated on the basis of their mental capacity or not. If yes, then whether different curriculum should be prescribed for extra-ordinary students or not. Whether it is feasible for the Government to establish separate school in a village for the entire extraordinary students with a curriculum of advance nature as compared with that for the average or low mental capacity. Whether it is feasible for the Government to have a board of Psychologists or Psychiatrists having sufficient number of persons at each District Level of the Country to visit annually every school both for male and female to segregate the students of Extraordinary nature, average and low and then recommend them to be admitted in the relevant school. It is beyond the capacity of a teacher to analyse the students on basis of their mental capacity. Teacher is meant only to teach a book of a subject to the best of his ability. Some students are so quick and vigorous in learning that when a teacher either speak or write a word on the black board the word is picked by them while some a so dull-minded that even if you stick to that one word or that one book for the whole day, they are unable to assimilate the word or concept of a subject. Actually, these students cause the wastage of the time of those intelligent students who are deserved to be taught more teaching materials in less time or more complicated concepts for broadening their minds. At present, the mentally retarded and extraordinary ones are dumped in one class just to increase the number of students to placate the concerned Minister or Officer to show to the donor agencies that the quantity has been increased and by a certain year the literacy rate would be 100% in the Country. This dumping of every kind of students is a head-ace for the teachers. They increase the quantity at the altar of quality. The main reasons of not improving the quality of Education start at these lower levels. In the whole game the Teacher and Student are the main sufferers because the teacher obeys the instruction from the superiors that quantity be increased. Quantity is increased but this quantity is not maintained because the drop out rate of students increases with the passage of time and on going from lower classes to the upper classes where the books become more tough for the dull-minded students while at the same time they might have reached to such an age when they can work anywhere without continuing his study. At this stage they become prey to the various anti-social and anti-Pakistan elements. The allegation that the Government school teachers are not performing their duty with such devotion as is performed by those of private schools. There is no truth in this allegation because what I have noted for the last 21 years is that those students who are rich go to private schools. After some years of stay in the school and payment when it is realized that the students who are dull-minded are discouraged in such mysterious way that they get the way of Government schools where they become more troublesome for the teacher due to difference of curricula and medium of instructions. Now the other side of the picture is also dark. Those students in the government schools who get distinctions at various levels are migrated by their parents to the private schools. Thus the government schools and their teachers are struck with a two edged sword. One side, they are compelled to accommodate the rejected students of the private schools and the other side, the intelligent students are sucked from them in the name of better Education. Man is by nature neither devil nor angel but becomes so in the conditions in which he is put. The inter-changeability of students among the public and private schools has created havoc in the standard of Education in the Country. Under the law, parents should have only one option either to send their children to public or private schools. Once they have exercised their this option should be considered final and then the public schools should be prevented from accommodating the dull-minded and rejected students of private schools nor the intelligent students should be allowed to go to private schools to give finally the credit of public school teacher to a private school. If this restriction is implemented in letter and spirit, it would expose both the public and private schools to a fair criticism. The fruit of one’s hard-working teacher should not be reaped by the other. The other restriction should be imposed on the employees of the Education Department that they should send their children to Government Schools in which either they are teaching or supervising their conduct. From the Minister down to a Class IV of the Education Department should admit their children in Government Schools or should not accept employment in Education Department. It is the irony that some persons serving in the Education Department has also opened their private schools. How it can be that he would sincerely work for the promotion of the Government Schools in the presence of this private school. The Government should also devote attention to this serious problem. At present, the majority of the employees of the Education Department send their children to private schools which diminishes their spirit in teaching or supervising the conduct of the Government Schools because their own benefit or loss is not involved in the matter. Both the Teaching and Supervising Classes just push the time and kill time and consider the school duty as a source of earning to expend that somewhere else. The Education Policy should also accommodate the above stated restrictions for the better results.

THIRD CURRICULUM: English should be the medium of instruction from Primary to upper levels while regional languages and Urdu should also be taught in order to acquaint the students with his mother tongue and national language. Concept of the student should be build up in English language. The Government should bring English experts from United Kingdom for at least ten years and should distribute them in all the Districts of the Country. These Experts should teach English to our teachers in those Districts for their subsequent transmission of exact English knowledge to the other teachers for ultimately to the students. The concept of promotion of teachers should be reversed and those who wish to have high scales and pays should be given duty in the Primary Schools as is present in most of the foreign Countries. It is very strange that those teaching in the colleges are enjoying high salaries but their work load is nothing as compared with Secondary Schools and those serving in the Secondary Schools have upper scales of pay and have less work load than those serving in the Primary Schools. Highest qualification should be prescribed for the Primary School Teachers but should be also be given highest salary. When we imitate the foreign Countries in other matters either relating to Education or other matters then we should also imitate them in the treatment of teachers. They give high priority to Education and Teachers; the same should also be given in our Country Pakistan for better result. We became atomic bomb holders but we failed in reducing the humiliating literacy in the Country because we gave high priority to Defence and not to Education. Army officers and other personnel were stuffed every facility in the name of Defence but the Teachers were left to live from hand to mouth. Look at the status and standard of living of Army Officers and Teachers, the difference is clear. Army officers are living in such a way as if they have conquered Pakistan from someone else while the other institutions are in such condition as if they have betrayed the cause of Pakistan. That is why I always stress on the point that the future existence of Pakistan is mainly dependant not on the weapons or military trainings but on its attitude towards other institutions. I have declared the curriculum in regional languages and medium of instruction in regional languages a “conspiracy” against the poor and common citizen of Pakistan for his destruction. Curriculum should be based on the realities of life. Curriculum should be such to increase the curiosity of a student in a certain profession. Curriculum should be such to apprise the students with the grounds realities to increase the fraternal bonds between the “haves” and “have-nots”. At present curriculum is not fulfilling the requirements for producing skilled, thoughtful persons of the society. Uniform system of Education in uniform medium of instruction is the cry of the hour. The State can overcome the disturbance in the society only through the weapon of Education and devoted and committed teaching staff and Supervising Staff.

          Thanks.

Manzoor Ahmad Yousafzai.

B.Sc; L.L.B M.A. Political Science.

Primary School Teacher,

Government Primary School, No. 3 Kotha, District Swabi NWFP, Pakistan.

Dated: Sunday, 05 April 2009.

(Excerpt begins from here).

7.1 IMPROVING TEACHER QUALITY

139. There is a consensus amongst all stakeholders that the quality of teachers in the public sector is unsatisfactory. Poor quality of teacher in the system in large numbers

is owed to the mutations in governance, an obsolete pre-service training structure and

a less than adequate in service training regime. Presence of incompetence in such a huge quantity and permeation of malpractices in the profession have eroded the once

exalted position enjoyed by teachers under the eastern cultural milieu. Teaching has

become the employment of last resort of most educated young persons; especially

males.

140. Reform is required in all areas: pre-service training and standardization of

qualifications; professional development; teacher remuneration, career progression

and status; and governance and management of the teaching workforce. The growth of private sector is adding new complexities to the teaching profession and needs to be taken into account in any reform of the system.

Policy Actions:

1. A Bachelors degree, with a B.Ed., shall be the requirement for teaching at the

elementary level. A Masters level for the secondary and higher secondary, with a

B.Ed., shall be ensured by 2018. PTC and CT shall be phased out through

38 Knowledge and Skills for Life: First Results from PISA 2000, OECD, 2001.

39 Teachers Matter: Attracting, Developing and Retaining Effective Teachers, OECD 2005.

encouraging the present set of teachers to improve their qualifications, while new

hiring shall be based on the advanced criteria.

2. Teacher training arrangements, accreditation and certification procedures shall

be standardised and institutionalised.

3. Teacher education curriculum shall be adjusted to the needs of the school

curriculum and scheme of studies. The curriculum shall include training for

student-centred teaching, cross-curricular competencies, and an on-site

component.

4. A separate cadre of specialised teacher trainers shall be developed.

5. Governments shall take steps to ensure that teacher recruitment, professional

development, promotions and postings are based on merit alone.

6. All teachers shall have opportunities for professional development through a

programme organised on a three-year cyclic basis. Progress in career shall be

linked to such professional development.

7. Recruitment of Teachers and running of Teachers Training Programmes shall be

done at the District level, so as to reduce the problem of teachers’ absenteeism

and the negligence of schools in remote areas

8. Teacher allocation plans, likewise, shall be based on schools needs and

qualifications of teachers. Over the course of next two years, Governments shall

develop a rationalised and need-based school allocation of teachers, which

should be reviewed and modified annually.

9. To control absenteeism and multiple job-holding, Provincial and Area

Administrations shall develop EMIS data on teacher deployment.

10. Institutionalised and standardised in-service teacher training regime shall be

established in those provinces where it has not already been done.

11. In-service training shall cover a wide range of areas: pedagogy and pedagogical

content knowledge; subject content knowledge; testing and assessment practices;

multi-grade teaching, monitoring and evaluation; and programmes to cater to

emerging needs like trainings in languages and ICT.

12. Training needs shall be assessed on the basis of research and training

programmes.

13. Governments shall take steps to improve social status and morale of teachers.

These include: Upgrading of teacher salaries as part of establishing a separate

teaching cadre and teaching career; teachers' professional development, and a

reward system based on performance measures.

14. The teaching workforce shall be managed on a truly professional basis,

organised as a specialised function.

15. The voice of teachers associations shall be given due consideration in decisions

on collective issues affecting teachers.

16. Governments shall aim to draw upon resources from the private sector through

public-private partnerships, especially in the areas of teacher education and

professional development programmes.

17. International Development Partners’ resources shall be harnessed within a broad

national programme of teacher improvement for the country as a whole through

inter-tier collaboration.

7.2 CURRICULUM REFORM

141. Curriculum is the guide that delineates the learning path of a student. It also

determines the process of this learning. Normally a curriculum should have the

teacher as the centre but textbooks development appears to be the only activity

flowing from the curriculum. In the classroom teachers do not use it being solely

focused on the single textbook assigned to them. Even assessments are based on this

textbook and not the curriculum.

142. The curriculum also does not cater to the diverse conditions in the education

sector itself (e.g. multi-grade classes), as well as, the variations within the

geographical breadth of the country. Pakistan is blessed with a multitude of cultures

and topographies, these fail to be adequately recognized and assimilated by the

education system. In basic primary education the most important missing element is

the diffused focus on the local context. However efforts have been made to overcome

the deficiencies in curriculum development and its translation into meaningful

knowledge

143. A comprehensive review of school curricula was initiated in 2005. The

Curriculum Wing of the Ministry of Education, strengthened by professionals from

the field, reviewed the scheme of studies in the first phase. In the second phase, the

revised curricula for 23 core subjects (classes I to XII) were notified in 2007. The

review of remaining subjects as listed in the scheme of studies is in progress and will

continue during 2008. Comparison of current curriculum with curricula of different

countries; consultations with teachers, administrators, educationists, curriculum

experts and students; field visits to collect feedback from teachers and stakeholders;

identification and training of working teams through workshops and seminars;

reviews of drafts by subject experts and working teachers leading to further revision

and refinement of contents; and preparation of a uniform curriculum format consisting

of standards, benchmarks and learning outcomes were vital parts of the curriculum

development process.

Policy Actions:

1. Curriculum development shall be objective driven and outcome based. It shall

focus on learning outcomes rather than content. It shall closely reflect important

social issues; provide more room for developing the capacity for self-directed

learning, the spirit of inquiry, critical thinking, problem-solving and team-work;

and local contextual material.

2. The curriculum development and review process shall be standardised and

institutionalised within the framework of the Federal Supervision of Curricula,

Textbooks and Maintenance of Standards of Education Act, 1976.

3. Curriculum shall emphasize the fundamental rights guaranteed to the citizens of

Pakistan, so that each individual shall develop within himself/herself and the

society at large, a civic culture strong enough to withstand any extra

constitutional interference which threatens those rights.

4. Environmental education shall be made an integral part of early education.

5. Use of Information Communication Technologies in Education shall be

promoted.

6. Curriculum shall include health education. This education will among other

things help in (i) Awareness of fatal diseases such as HIV/AIDS and prevention

of harmful practises (ii) Detection and prevention of child abuse in many cases.

7.4 IMPROVING STUDENT ASSESSMENT

146. Assessment systems are quality measures that cater to a number of requirements

of the education system. These can be used to measure overall system efficiency as

well as individual students’ performance for movement in the education system. A

comprehensive assessment design would provide feedback for improvements at all

tiers starting from changes in the classroom to improvements in the national systems.

147. Assessment system currently suffers from several deficiencies in promoting

quality education. The one with more sinister outcomes is the practise of rote learning

which stops the mental growth of the child and blocks innovative learning. Efforts

have to be made to address this issue and need for inculcating critical and analytical

thinking skills for producing life-long independent learners have to be emphasized.

Assessment mechanism should be such that analytical thinking and critical reflections

are tapped and encouraged.

148. The recent work of the National Education Assessment System and the Punjab

Examination Commission shall be continued and further in reforming the system

across the country.

Policy Actions:

1. Education system needs to be internationally competitive and Pakistan shall

make efforts to offer itself for international level academic assessments by 2012.

2. Student performance shall be based on assessing competence in a specialised

area that requires a given skill set. There shall be periodic reviews of the

assessment system.

3. Multiple assessment tools in addition to traditional examinations shall be

explored, to ensure the right balance between the uses of formative assessment

approaches combined with the summative approach of high-stakes examinations.

4. National standards shall be developed to reduce the differences in quality across

regions. Assessment processes shall be standardised and become uniform across

the Boards over time so that students appearing in examinations under different

Boards can expect to receive the same grades.

5. A centralised assessment system through gradual reduction of the number of

boards shall be achieved within the next five years.

6. The Education Boards shall be responsible for capacity building of paper setters

and examiners.

7. A comprehensive plan shall be prepared to eliminate cheating from examinations

including addressing social attitudes towards the issue.

8. A quality cycle management shall link the various systems of assessment and

institutions involved in assessment (examinations, NEAS/PEAC, continuous

assessment) to provide feedback to curriculum development, textbooks

development and teacher education and professional development.