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What ails education?
Karachi, Jan 16, 2008: "The foundation of every state is the education of its youth."
Diogenes Laertius Karachi's dilapidated education system is in need of
major restructuring. The government schools that exist all around the city are
in a state of chaos. This has been seen in places like Shah Faisal Town and DHA
Phase-1. Thus, the government's claims about making education free and
accessible are supposed to be taken with a pinch of salt.
We know that
the Sindh government has come up with a programme of providing free text books
to students. However, the manner in which this programme is being followed is
shocking. If media reports are anything to go by, then the programme has already
failed for various reasons. Firstly, the main thing that the students need is
proper place that has sanitation. For example, after Eid-ul-Azha, the offal that
was lifted by the government from Shah Faisal Colony 1 was partially disposed at
a huge, uncovered garbage dump outside a renowned girls' college in the area.
Sanitation and cleanliness has been compromised to the extent that many students
are forced to withdraw from colleges.
The politicisation of educational
institutions is another case in point. There have been instances in which school
authorities have caught students bringing drugs and firearms to school. Experts
say that this trend in our universities can only be curtailed when student
unions, banned since the days of General Zia, are revived. This will give
students a legal and readily accessible opportunity to build their social
networks and voice their concerns regarding education and other issues of social
importance. However, many political parties are still opposed to this idea for
reasons best known to them.
In Karachi, class divisions are easily
visible in the education system. The students who belong to rich families
usually opt for elite colleges and schools. Those who cannot afford to pay up to
Rs200,000 a year for education are obliged to go to institutions of lower
standards. While the Cambridge system curriculum is updated every few years to
keep up with changing demands, the local education system has yet to see
rational modernisation in its curriculum for the last 10 years or more.
There are a host of issues of different nature that plague education in
Karachi. It is high time that the city and federal government join hands with
the education authorities, the city's intelligentsia, civil society and the
corporate sector to address the real issues afflicting education
system.
-By Mehroz Siraj (The News)
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| Education News | | Updated: 24 May, 2012 |
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