Daily Times

Education has never been high on the list of priorities in this country. As fiery political battles rage on national media on why it is still last on the list, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has not wasted any opportunity to transform the education standards that are now acknowledged by many independent studies. Silently, but with swiftly, the docile looking Chief Minister of KP and the youthful looking Education Minister Atif Khan have left no stone unturned to ensure that improving access to education remains a high priority for the KP government.

From buildings and furniture, to books and software, we find a comprehensive plan penetrating the far-flung nooks and corners of the province — aiming to reach each child.

Numbers speak. KP’s focus on education is reflected in the steady increase in their education budget, starting from Rs 63 billion in 2013 to136 billion in 2016. A 216 percent increase in four years is an unprecedented and incomparable investment in people by any province in the country. Unlike other provinces, this budget has not been merely ceremonial. Rather, large sums have actually been spent on improving the infrastructure, teaching quality and student enrolment.

School infrastructure is a core necessity in any education system, and KP has spent a full Rs 29billion in providing missing facilities like rooms, running water, boundary walls and school furniture, aside from building 2,428 new schools. According to an AlifAilan study, the state of education related infrastructure has improved most in KP out of all Pakistani provinces. Another one billion have been spent on installing solar panels in schools so that electricity shortages do not hinder studies.

However, without teachers, no building is worth anything. Teacher absenteeism and high student drop-out rates plague the entire country. KP has introduced a number of incentives to retain teacher’s presence in school. 4700 cash prizes varying from as much as Rs 50,000 to 100,000 have been distributed among teachers to encourage dutifulness, while 300 absentee teachers have also been terminated from their jobs. Complimenting this are the on-going teacher training programs that have trained 65,000 teachers on concept-building and teaching practices. Institutions like Beaconhouse School, the British Council and others have been engaged for these training programs with the target of ‘better learning outcomes’.

According to an AlifAilan study, the state of education related infrastructure has improved most in KP out of all Pakistani provinces

There has been more ground-breaking work. 45million free books have reached KP schools. Rs 500 million have been spent on sports facilities. The syllabus has been revised to make it interesting and a free uniform for all has become mandatory in KP. 1300 computer labs have been made in high schools, with special emphasis on Information Technology (IT).

Involving community and parents in school development has long been recognized as the best quality check. School Management Committees have been made to ensure implementation. The promise of distributing power on the district and local level has also been upheld as all high school and colleges have committees that make recommendations for their budget requirements. School based budgeting will be completely operationalised during the 2017-18 period in Abbottabad, Bannu, Battagram, Charsadda, Chitral, DI Khan, Nowshera and Swat. Transparency in the system is ensured by programs such as IMU (Independent Monitoring Units), SQMI (School Quality Management Initiative) and SMIS (Online Information).

The Private School industry has thrived as a direct consequence of the abysmal state of state provided education. More and more parents have been forced to live beyond their means to afford better education in the private sector. However for the first time ever, the changes in KP education system has encouraged more than 160,000 students to migrate from private to public schools in KP — a testimony to its quality.

Remoter areas where school access has been a challenge has been a special focus — several programs to induct children living in far-flung areas and girls who have missed their chance to join school and even adults who have been left deprived, shows the relentless endeavour that KP authorities have exercised in this sector. The Iqra Vouchers are especially for children living in areas where there are no public schools, so they can join private schools on government funds. Rs 1.4billion have been spent on creating Community-Based Schools, where a local woman runs the school at her home, facilitated and supervised by the authorities. There is also the Speed Literacy Program (SLP), another program educating hundreds of adult students in evening schools.

Girls have been a special focus of the KP government because previously, they had been lagging behind in gender ratio. More than 400,000 girls have been given a stipend for attending the school. Mardan has had the honour of having the first Girls Cadet School in the country, built at a cost of Rs 3billion.

Universities have received special attention, with an increase in facilities and building areas, while their governing boards have greater powers than ever now. Three new universities will be built in KP, the University of Lakki Marwat, DI Khan Agriculture University and Mardan University of Engineering and Technology.

All this has been augmented with sports activities, carnivals and talent shows that have brought life and bustle to the campuses and playgrounds of schools and colleges. The Peshawar Zalmi is collaborating with the Education Ministry to find and train young cricketers from all over the province — a much needed effort to revive Pakistan’s favourite sport.

Education is a two-prong sector — it deals with material resources, but is also intertwined with hearts and minds. Pakistan cannot be transformed into a country with a high literacy rate through legislatures on paper and fancy playgrounds. What it needs is vision, and the will to invest in the most important resource-people. As they say “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance”.

The writer is a columnist, consultant, coach, and an analyst and can be reached at andleeb.abbas1@gmail,com. She tweets at @AndleebAbbas

Published in Daily Times, April 6^th 2018.