The report from the Pakistan Institute of Education says that the country’s school dropout rate is high, while universal enrolment has not been achieved even at the primary level of education.
A statistical report on the performance of the education system for the years 2021–2022 prepared by the Pakistan Institute of Education (PIE) says that two of every five Pakistani children are out of the country’s schooling system.
The staggering revelations regarding the number of children who are not in school says that despite a decrease in the percentage of out-of-school children from 44 per cent in 2016–17 to 39 per cent in 2021–22, the absolute number has surged from 22.02 million to 26.21 million during the same period.
The report has given rise to many questions, but two are most apt:
Will a five per cent increment in the education budget by the provincial governments be enough to provide every child in Pakistan with 10 years of education?
Will these increases be able to address the tremendous inequities in the education system and allow every child to explore his or her potential fully?
Pakistani economist Dr. Kaiser Bengali says that “The state’s lack of interest in promoting education is leading us nowhere but to poor educational quality in both schools and universities.”
Scarce toilet facilities
Multi-grade teaching is quite common due to the lack of an appropriate number of teachers in schools, especially primary schools, the PIE report says, adding that the government does not have enough middle and high schools to offer a higher transition rate from primary to middle schools.
It adds that the quality of education provided by the government is not up to par. On average, fifth-grade children are one or two grades behind where they should be. And just about two per cent of the candidates who take the civil service examinations even pass the written test.
Toilet facilities are scarce in primary schools, leading to girls not going to school. It said that 24 per cent of primary schools across Pakistan do not have toilet facilities for students, adding that 10 per cent of middle and three per cent of high schools do not have this basic facility.
The PIE report says that the dropout rate is high, while universal enrolment has not been achieved even at the primary level of education. Of 100 children enrolling in the first grade, no more than six make it to college level.
Economic disparities and poverty are among the reasons families are unable to bear the educational costs of their children. Moreover, families expect their children to start working at early stages of life to contribute to family income.
Commodified education
According to Dr. Bengali, the inadequate syllabus of mathematics in the country, even in the elite private sector institutions, leads to poor understanding of the concepts and further leads to mere memorisation of the same.
Nargis Rehman, Chairperson of the Pakistan Women’s Foundation for Peace (PWFFP) stressed the need for collective efforts to promote literacy among the underprivileged, highlighting the importance of skill training, extracurricular activities, and the employment of modern technologies in the education system. She also noted that Pakistan trails way behind its neighbouring countries in terms of development and education, saying that educational institutes have commodified education, turning it into a business.
Educationist Baela Raza Jameel expressed his concern about the country’s lack of education policy since 2009. He also stressed the fact that the economic disparities in the country play a significant role in educational access.
While allocating funds to the province and providing financial assistance to families can be helpful, it is not enough in this dire situation, educationists feel. To curb the situation, raising awareness about the importance of education should be a priority they say. There is also a need for more innovative thinking on how to achieve our educational goals.
