Daily Times

“Research is a process of steps used to collect and analyse information to increase our understanding of a topic or issue”. (Creswell, 2008). Although research has been defined differently by different authors and thinkers, the significance of research is recognised equally by all of them. Undoubtedly, research is the most important tool to investigate the problems of the people, to find out their demands, and even to explore the mysteries of life. Research has the solutions for all.

The development of knowledge-based economy of advanced countries is possible only through the scholarly outcomes of academicians. We are living in a place surrounded by many internal and external dilemmas and how to get out of this critical situation is still a question. Pakistan is a country where we see firm teaching traditions but a very weak research culture.

Universities, though, can play their role in order to improve the prevailing situation since universities are regarded as centres where intellectuals and thinkers are produced. We see many elite institutions attracting the best faculty and the crème de la crème of students from across the country.

Unfortunately, poor research is pushing Pakistan’s grades down. Only four universities could secure a place in the world university rankings. Pakistan can no longer afford to ignore the world university rankings, and universities must stop pretending that the global rankings are not relevant to Pakistan. We must play the same game the rest of the world is playing. We need not be shy about it. Building world-class universities requires abundance of resources, including, capital, time, effort and talent.

Research begins by asking questions and then seeking answers. Young children understand this intuitively as they explore and try to make sense of their surroundings. However, the focus of Pakistani education has always been upon the game of ‘facts’ rather than the exploratory root of the scientific process

The research being conducted in different universities lacks quality. Researchers are more concerned with the number of their publications rather than the quality of their research. Students are trained to get good grades; whereas they should be introduced to scientific research.

I agree that conducting research without having sufficient funds is not an easy task to be done. Lack of incentives has also become one of the reasons behind the decadence of research in Pakistan. According to Pervez Hoodbhoy, various incentives including foreign scholarships, faculty hiring, TTS, and Domestic PhD programs led to the plethora of low quality research that people only want to get promoted.

All these reasons can’t be ignored but I think the single most crucial hurdle in Pakistan to research is the near-zero tolerance for disagreement. We have in place a hierarchical system, which operates at every level of society — at the home, school, college, university and workplace. The elder or the senior can never be wrong and you are not expected to challenge that. In most homes, children are not expected to speak unless they are spoken to! Give them right to speak up.

It is easier to judge the mind of a man by his questions rather than his answers. — Pierre-Marc-Gaston, duc de Lévis (1764-1830)

Due to a fundamental lack of critical thinking skills, Pakistan has not been successful in increasing the quality of its research. We need to understand that research begins by asking questions and then seeking answers.

Young children understand this intuitively as they explore and try to make sense of their surroundings. However, the focus of Pakistani education has always been upon the game of ‘facts’ rather than the exploratory root of the scientific process. Education has become just like spelling. You just have to memorise and don’t need to make any sense. If we encourage questions, it will definitely help us bring the true spirit of research into our educational system, and the art of asking good questions is important in fostering a competent researcher.

The writer is currently serving as a lecturer in the department of Political Science and Pakistan Studies at Kinnaird College for Women, Lahore, Pakistan. She can be accessed at sabahshah82@gmail.com or sabah.mushtaq@kinnaird.edu.pk

Published in Daily Times, November 8^th 2017.