Daily Times

Pakistan is facing the problem of life & death over the educational policy maneuverings. In the current age of artificial intelligence, we are strictly in the grip of serious uncertainties & flawed educational system. Literacy rate is in the state of free fall; Research is in the state demise; innovation is in the state of stagnancy; goals are unidentified; uniformity is lack lustering; curriculum is outdated; methods of teaching are stereotyped- more ratification & less critical thinking; professionalism is backlashed; conventional system of examination is constituted; external and internal manipulations are recklessly extravagant; resources are ruthlessly inadequate & creeping regime over educational policy making is in ascendency. Moreover, all these impediments get together & inflate the illiteracy, poverty, insecurity, sectarianism, terrorism, intolerance & devastation. When going gets tough the tough gets going, sages say. But in Pakistan’s case its policy makers are in the grips of profound mediocrity as it churns out through one vicious circle to another. However, change is only constant panacea that could cleansed the Augean stables & execute the plans for goodwill of educational arena.

Therefore, the first area which requires utmost attention is the determination of proper direction & sufficient budgetary allocation for education in the GDP. The outgoing year didn’t prove to be much different from the previous years as far as developments in the education sector of the country are concerned. Budgetary allocations were decreased once again in most cases, inequalities in education, particularly gender disparity, could not be bridged, higher education remained neglected.

Secondly, curriculum should be evaluated & reviewed on regular basis. In this regard a vast survey could be conducted to seek the knowledge regarding global levels. In addition to this opinions of teachers, professionals and community regarding their expectations and observations should be taken. In the shadow

of these expert recommendations the curriculum should be redefined and the such curriculum should be prepared which caters to the psychological needs of the society and the country without any discrimination of religion, caste, color and creed.

Thirdly, There should be proper institutions for the professional development of teachers form alpha to omega. For this purpose the current system of teacher education institutions must be sufficed with funds and qualified human resources to run programme of training for teachers on periodical basis. Accountability must be strengthened and all the professionals associated with the educational system should be educated to own their responsibilities both individually and collectively. This will assist in

creating a sense of ownership of the system and its functional organization.

Fourthly, external & internal pressure must be lessened for properly implementing the policies without any hurdles & delay. There should be a strong political will & whim on the part of the government to manipulate its educational manifesto polices. Poor policy implementation has led to creation of gaps and trust deficit on the part of the public and governments. Ergo, less political interference will allow the system to work smoothly.

Finally, system of examination should be incorporated with sophisticated methods that is to shift it from conventional ratification to critical thinking & rationality. It should be free from all sort of mafias, corruption & illegalities. The culture of research should be promoted within educational institutions. For this purpose the pace of research & innovation oriented programs in teaching and learning should be accelerated in educational institutions all over the country especially at higher levels. Government should increase the volume of funding to higher education commission for this purpose.

On the whole, Father of the nation said; , “Education is a matter of life and death for Pakistan. The world is progressing so rapidly that without requisite advances in education, not only shall we be left behind others but may be wiped out altogether.’’

The author is a third year Medical Student at Gambat Institute of Medical Sciences.