Why Primary Education System Failed in Pakistan, Reasons and Recommendations

 Introduction to Primary Education

Primary education, also called, elementary education, is for children in kindergarten through sixth grade. It is typically the first stage of formal education coming after pre-school and before secondary school.

 Importance of Primary Education

Primary education is the basic and foremost right of every child. Its availability and provision are not only the responsibility of the state but parents and households. Primary education is important to provide opportunities to:

 

Self-development.

Creativity and communication skills.

Enjoy learning and develop a desire to continue learning.

Develop aesthetic values.

Develop awareness of the environment.

Develop individual talents.

Reduces chronic and inter-generational poverty etc. 

 

 Development of Primary Education in Pakistan

1.   Role of the Constitution of Pakistan in developing primary education

Article 25-A of the Constitution of Pakistan obligates the state to provide free and compulsory quality education to children aged 5to16 years old.

The state shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of 5to16 to years old in such a manner as may be determined by law. (Malik,2011)

Article 35-B of the Constitution of Pakistan forces the state to remove illiteracy from the country and provide free compulsory education.

The state shall remove illiteracy and provide free and compulsory education within the minimum possible period. (Malik,2011)

 

2.    Launching of various NEPs to promote primary education

The government launched a nationwide initiative in National Education Policy(NEP)1998-2010, intending to eradicate providing basic education to all children.

A new NEP 2009 has been launched one year before finishing the last NEP. Through various educational reforms, by 2015, the ministry of education expects to attain 100% enrollment levels among children of primary school age and a literacy rate of 86% among people aged over 10.

3.    Devolution of autonomy to schools

In Pakistan, the devolution of autonomy to schools is being emphasized by National                            Education Policies since 1959 with a renewed interest in community participation since 1992. (Ministry of education,1992; Farooqi,2011). The district governments were tasked to administer primary and secondary education(Farooqi,2011). Under the LGO 2001, the School Management Committees/Parent-Teacher Associations(SMCs/PTAs) were created through which communities can get involved in school governance and decision-making (Nayyar-Stone et al,2006). These SMCs/PTAs) were in Place in all four provinces of Pakistan.

 4.     Major educational innovations and reforms in Pakistan

There are numerous educational innovations and reforms which have been useful in promoting primary education. Out of them, a few have been discussed here:

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a.   Privatization

The 1998 education policy observes that 'the government alone could not carry the burden of the whole education process'(Pakistan. Ministry of Education, 1998, p. 108) and hence the 'private enterprises will be encouraged to open education institutions, particularly in rural areas (p. 108).  The Education Sector Reforms (ESR) 2001-2004 actively encourage public-private partnerships to increase 'access to quality education and to meet the increased 'demand for education (Pakistan. Ministry of Education, 2002a, p. 52).

 

b.    Universal primary education campaigns

The 1998 Education Policy sees elementary education as a fundamental human right. The goals and targets set for elementary education were in line with the requirements of 'international commitments such as the World Declaration on Education for All (1990); Delhi Summit Declaration (1993) and subsequent E-9 Ministerial Review Meetings, and UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989)' (Pakistan. Ministry of Education, 1998, p.26). The ESR also launched some innovative programs for increasing enrolment like the Tawana Pakistan: School Nutrition Package (SNP) for girls and the introduction of early childhood classes in primary schools.

 

c.    Provision of teaching kits

In 1974 The Ministry of Education following a recommendation from UNESCO decided to give each school in Pakistan a teaching kit. The aims were to make it easier for students to learn abstract concepts from concrete examples. The resulting box contained 100 items such as charts, cutouts, a flannel board, chemicals, test tubes, beakers, a magnet, and pictures of famous personalities. After some Pilot-testing of the items, the project began in 1976 with funding from UNICEF.

 

d.    Residences for rural female teachers

The World Bank and the Government of Pakistan, under the first Primary Education Project, built 320 residences for single teachers in Punjab, Sindh, and Northwest Frontier Provinces, and ten cluster school hostels for married teachers in Baluchistan to deal with the problem of female teacher’s shortage due to house lacking near rural schools.

 

e.     Usage of ICT in the education sector

The awareness of primary school children is the linkage between information and communication technology(ICT) and the way they learn within the situation of a school. Due to IT, students deliver better results. ICT is providing an excellent opportunity for teachers to adopt millions of teaching styles that were previously confined to a few. Through technology, the development of primary education is becoming possible.

 

5. International support for education

Since 1947, Pakistan receives foreign aid for different educational development programs. Being specific to primary education and foreign aid, it significantly enhances the completion rate of primary school. The primary aim of this foreign aid is to meet the MDG target of achieving the primary competition rate. The very first MDG of education was to achieve a 100% primary completion rate. UN and other donor agencies provided funds to Pakistan to reach this goal. Similarly, the teacher's training program was supported by the Canadian International Development Agency, and the Department for International Development took initiatives for student enrollment drives and teacher training programs, and so on.

 

 Issues facing primary education.

The educational system of Pakistan is continuously facing many familiar problems at the primary level. Some of them are discussed below:

 

1.     Lack of Uniformity

The system of education in Pakistan according to Iqbal (1981) is not based on uniform principles. Different systems of education are simultaneously working in the country. The curriculum is also not uninformed which has given birth to different schools of thought. For example, there is a world of difference between the attitudes of students coming out from the public educational institutions, Deeni Madaris, and the few private elite institutions. This trend has accelerated the pace of polarization in society.

 

2.     Education without Direction

A sound education system is essential for every nation in the world. Pakistani education system due to being directionless and weak has not been able to develop and guide its people on sound political and social grounds. There is a lack of cohesion in the system and it is more prone toward general education which does not bring any skilled manpower to the market. Resulting there is increasing unemployment.

 

3.     Lack of Quality Teachers

The quality of teachers in Pakistani schools is deplorable. According to a UNESCO report, the quality of the teachers and instruction in schools is of low quality. This situation is grimmer in remote parts of Punjab, Sindh, and Baluchistan where even there are no teachers available in schools. Research has found that teachers do not use new methods and strategies for teaching and learning. Teachers encourage cramming of the materials by students. Students do not know the use of libraries in educational institutions. Thus the reading habits are decreasing among the students.

 

4.      Alarming Dropouts

Due to the lack of effective management of schools, there is a lack of discipline in schools and other educational institutions which leads to high-scale dropouts of students. This trend has increased to such an extent that there are now 40 lac students out of school due to drop out in Pakistan.

 

5.     System of Examination

The examination system should be based on qualitative and quantitative techniques to comprehensively evaluate the performance of students. The examination system of Pakistan is not only outdated but it also does not have the quality to evaluate the performance of learners comprehensively. The examination system of Pakistan tests only the memory of students.  As a result of this, the examination system promotes cramming which negates the role of the high intellectual power of learners in the education process.

 

6.      Poor Supervisory Standards

 The system of school supervision is aimless in Pakistan. There is not only a lack of supervisory activities in schools but the process of supervision itself does not bring any positive results for teachers and students. The supervision system is concerned with controlling and harassing the teachers rather than providing help and guidance for the improvement of performance.

 

7.      Internal and External Influences

The education system in Pakistan is not free from external and internal influences. Externally the system has been made hostage to political interference and internally it is plagued by bureaucratic manipulations. There are greater favoritism and nepotism in matters of transfers, appointments, and promotions. Due to this, the basic infrastructure of the education system in Pakistan has been affected.

 

8.     Lack of Resources

Education resources such as books, libraries, and physical facilities are important for the smooth running of the educational process. There are despairingly no facilities for books, libraries, and reading materials in all educational institutions of the country. Besides, there are overcrowded classrooms, inadequate teachers, and ill-equipped laboratories. This entire grim situation has resulted in despair and a low standard of the education

system.

 

9.     Policy Implementation

Since the foundation of Pakistan, several education policies were created. There has been a lack of political will on the part of successive governments to implement the policies vigorously. The policies were highly ambitious but could not be implemented in true letter and spirit. There has been a problem of corruption, lack of funds, and gross inconsistency in successive planning on the part of various political regimes in Pakistan. Moreover, in the overall policy formulation teachers have been ignored. They are regarded as an unimportant element that has led to the alienation between the teachers and the system of education.

 

10. Low Budgetary Allocation for Education

 The education system of Pakistan has been crippled mainly due to scarce finance. The successive governments have been giving less than 2.5 percent budget to the education sector which is not sufficient for the growing educational needs of the nation in the present changing times. According to the International Crisis Group, Pakistan is among the 12 countries in the world that spent less than 2 percent of its GDP on the education sector. With this insufficient budgetary allocation, the country is hardly going to meet the targets of universalization of primary education as a signatory to the Dakar Conference's MDG goals by 2015 and onward.

 

CONCLUSION

This concludes that education is a dynamic power that empowers each country to accomplish its general public objectives. Countries that have built up a sound arrangement of instruction have a sound social and political framework. The education system of Pakistan has not been able to play its role effectively in nation-building. . This factor has contributed to the advancement of frustration in Pakistani society. The group of people yet to come of Pakistan is aimless because of an imperfect education system that has radically neglected to raise the country on sound monetary, social, political, and moral grounds. The aimless education system is delivering powers for degree holders who are lacking in high-order live skills, for example, reflection, basic reasoning, examination, exploration, and innovativeness. Understudies emerging from the Pakistani educational system are hypothetically solid yet have no skills to apply whatever they gain from their institutions due to customary strategies for educating and learning. Finally, it infers that there is an urgent need to reform the system of education in Pakistan and for this purpose, this essay presents the following recommendations.

 

 Recommendations

1.   There should be a sufficient budgetary allocation for education in the national GDP. This will provide the system with resources to take a fresh breath of life.

2.    There should be quality institutions for the professional development of teachers from primary to higher levels. For this purpose, the existing system of teacher education institutions must be provided with funds to run programs of training for teachers on a periodical basis.

3.     Curriculum should be evaluated on annual basis. In this regard, a vast survey could be conducted to seek the opinions of teachers, parents, and the community regarding their expectations and observations.

4.     There should be as little political interference as possible. This will allow the system to function smoothly and without any discrimination.

5.     Polices should be implemented without any delay in time and resources. There should be a strong political will on the part of the government to implement policies without any delay.

6.    Examination system should be made free from the mafia of unfair means.  For this purpose, the government should enhance the salaries and the education professionals so that their tendencies are not diverted toward evil means of getting favors.

Contributor: Msm Yaqoob