Pakistani Education Reform -
Signs Of HopeBy Pervez Hoodbhoy
10 February, 2007
The Dawn
There is good news: the "White Paper" to "debate and finalize national education policy", distributed in December 2006 by the Ministry of Education, though incomplete and flawed, is an enormous step forward. So is the new school curriculum - which somewhat mysteriously and improperly preceded the White Paper. These may persuade even hardened cynics that the country's school education system still has a future. One is pleasantly surprised that this comes from a government ministry that has been in shambles for decades and is now headed, rather inauspiciously, by a former ISI general.Of course, there are problems aplenty. The White Paper, among other things, is manifestly unfair to Pakistan's minorities because it pretends that they do not exist; it contradicts itself in places; its multiple authors appear not to have communicated well with each other; and the treatment of the problems of higher education - as well as madrassa education - is unsatisfactory. But it is an accomplishment in spite of these failings.
First, a government document that aims to have a debate about policy in consultation with ordinary citizens is a welcome concept. Pakistanis have occasionally had political leaders who were elected, but never a bureaucracy soliciting people's views on crucial public matters. The invitation given to intellectuals and civil society organizations is novel, as is the apparent willingness to incorporate suggestions which these debates may generate. A revised White Paper in March 2007 will hopefully contain important changes.
Second, the White Paper draws upon new statistical data recently collected in a National Education Census on enrolments, dropout rates, geographical distributions, private schools, etc. This provides a framework for conducting an informed and reasoned debate, rather than vacuous
theorizing.Third, the White Paper Team, headed by a respected retired civil servant, Javed Hasan Aly, starts from the premise that Pakistan seeks progress and prosperity: "Recognizing education as a right of the citizen, it is the aim of the state of Pakistan to provide equal and ample opportunity to all its citizens to realize their full potential as individuals, preparing them for life, livelihood, and nation-building".
This is in stark contrast with earlier education policies - which saw Pakistani education as a tool to forcibly remake children's minds. An official document, issued eleven years ago by the same ministry, had required that school children be taught to "make speeches on jihad and shahadat"; be aware of "India's evil designs against Pakistan"; that they must "demonstrate by actions a belief in the fear of Allah"; go on field trips to "visit police stations"; and must "collect pictures of policemen, soldiers, and National Guards". [These are direct quotes.]
This grim - if not terrifying - set of goals, has now been replaced with a relatively moderate vision of a Muslim Pakistan in which, "We have to unburden ourselves of the weight of centuries of nostalgia, suffocating our capacities to find our way out from the darkness of ignorance".
Fine words, but surely real change will need more than vague hopes typed on white sheets of papers. The federal ministry of education and the four provincial education ministries are in a disastrous state. Their inefficiency, disorganization, and corrupt practices are legendary. Are there actually 12,737 non-functional "ghost" schools (as officially stated) or more like 30,000 in fact? Does the latest count of madrassas actually stand at 12,979 or is it closer to 22,000?
The management of educational institutions could not be poorer. The collapse of public schools comes from the inability of the state to deliver even half-decent education, or even to effectively monitor what is happening around it. This is what caused an explosion of private schools which, starting from near zero, now cover about 33% of Pakistan and as much as 70% of its cities.
This is bad news. Mere moralizing or proposing reforms and new curricula to the nation - but not knowing how to implement them - will make us despondent once again. Without reviving the public school system, education will become even more inaccessible to the poor and make it impossible to ever create a just society. Unfortunately, on this matter, the White Paper has no action plan that actually shows the way forward. We really should be told who will do the job. But even more importantly, what exactly needs to be done?
It is therefore time to construct workable plans and address real needs, albeit in ways never considered earlier. As one example, consider the issue of monitoring the country's schools, without which successful management of a large system is simply impossible.
Imagine a situation where a real (not fictitious) data profile exists on every one of the 245,682 Pakistani schools. These would be public and private, rich and poor, located in the cities or in remote mountainous or desert areas. The more details one has the better, but anything is better than nothing. Individual school profiles could be used to rationally apportion the correct quantum of government and private resources, check wastages, improve school administration and teaching quality, etc.
Such a huge project is impossible by traditional means. But space-age technology is changing the world, and Pakistan can use it to clean up its educational mess. Effective school monitoring, a vital but unfulfilled task, has suddenly become possible.
How? One satellite in geosynchronous orbit over Pakistan can locate every single school and also determine certain crude parameters. Information sent down by its cameras can easily reveal when a certain school opened and closed on a particular day, roughly how many students entered and left, etc. School buildings used as warehouses or cattle sheds could be instantly identified; there would be fewer ghost schools. All information would be stored in that school's dossier located in a computer system, accessible to the federal and provincial education ministries.
In most cases, school inspectors on the ground could supplement the satellite pictures. There is, of course, nothing new about school inspections. But what if an inspector is required to take pictures of the school he or she periodically visits, as well as to fill in required student and teacher attendance numbers, various assessment forms, the textbook and supplies situation, and then upload the information directly to the satellite above?
GPS technology allows the satellite to know exactly where the inspector is located. It is easy to make a report uploadable only from the school actually being inspected. Fictitious reports, which are the bane of the present system of school inspections, would become much harder. A report would instantly become part of that school's dossier, accessible in a centralized location. Even for urban schools in posh areas, this form of direct inspection would provide a source of valuable information.
With this kind of technological assistance, the five education ministries could turn into effective watchdogs servicing the needs of schools. The legions of their listless employees, presently occupying vast amounts of building space but doing nothing, could be turned into professionals sitting in front of computers. They would have various data at their fingertips, and be constantly communicating electronically with colleagues, supervisors, and suppliers of books and materials. Surely, the time for new ideas has come.
For the reader who thinks this is utopian: please get yourself a computer, internet connection, and download Google Earth for free. A satellite in the sky above you will allow you to see your house, the car standing in front of it, and the general environs. One can, of course, have far clearer pictures by paying appropriate fees.
To be sure, technology must never be considered a panacea. Structural changes in the system of Pakistan's educational management are essential. Massive teacher training and examination reform are obviously crucial, as is the need to decentralize school administration and turn it over to the town and zila level. These problems are also amenable to technological improvements, albeit to different degrees.
Clarity of purpose, political will, adequate financial resources for education, and willingness to appreciate and use modern technology - arranged in this order - can transform Pakistan's school system. Should we dare to hope?
The author teaches physics at Quaid-e-Azam University in Islamabad. Comments may be emailed to [email protected]
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