Students roll number slips, date-sheets

Students yet to receive roll number slips, date-sheets
Rawalpindi, Jan 28: Parents and teachers of more than 12,000 students of primary and middle standard have bemoaned the apathy of the District Education Department for its failure in dispatching roll number slips and date-sheets for the examinations scheduled to start on February 2.

According to sources in the District Education Department, the last date for receiving roll number slips was January 22, but the concerned authorities had failed to do so.

The data reveals that there are more than 5,000 schools, including public and private. The District Education Department collected Rs60 per school as service charges to dispatch roll number slips and date-sheets of the two examinations, but so far its staff have not delivered them.

According to sources, the majority of school administrations and students are being forced to collect roll number slips and date-sheets from the District Education Department.

The headmaster of a government-run school near Committee Chowk, on condition of anonymity, said: "The District Education Department collected sixty rupees from every school to dispatch roll number slips and date-sheets, but so far we have not received roll number slips and date-sheets despite the fact that only a few days are left in examinations."

Regretting the delay in the issuance of roll number slips and date-sheets, the father of a student said that his son could not appear in the middle standard examination without necessary documents.

A housewife said that her children could not concentrate on their studies, as they have not yet received their roll number slips and date-sheets.

Executive District Education Officer Malik Muhammad Ashraf, said: "All pending roll number slips and date-sheets will be dispatched to schools within a couple of days." He said that those candidates who have not received their roll number slips and date-sheets should contact his office.

Post your comments

Ministry's main feat, education policy
Islamabad: National Education Policy (NEP) 2009 is the biggest achievement of the Ministry of Education, as it was a lengthy process that was initiated in 2005 and remained dormant during the year 2007 and 2008, owing to the fluctuating political situation.

These findings are part of the recently published report titled 'Achievements of Ministry of Education: January 2008-November 2009' by the ministry's Policy & Planning Wing.

Highlighting the accomplishments of the ministry during the tenure of the present government, the report states that it was the former minister for education, Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani, who reactivated the NEP process and convened the 15th Inter-Provincial Education Ministers' (IPEM) meeting in February 2009 to share the NEP draft and get on board the implementing partners.

On governance, the policy discusses the issue of the inter-tier responsibilities wherein the respective roles and functions of the federal-provincial-district governments continue to be unclear. Confusion has been compounded, especially, at the provincial-district levels after the 'Devolution Plan', mainly because the latter was not supported by a clear articulation of strategies.

The other issue identified for governance reforms is the fragmentation of ministries, institutions, etc, for the management of various sub-sectors of education as well as, at times, within each sub-sector. Problems of management and planning have also been discussed and recommendations prepared.

On implementation, the policy document includes a chapter that describes the implementation framework that recognises the centrality of the federating units in the implementation of the education policy.

The role of the ministry will be that of a coordinator and facilitator, so as to ensure sectoral and geographic uniformity in the achievement of educational goals nationally. A shift has been made by making the policy truly 'national' rather than a federal matter.

According to data, the recurring budget of Ministry of Education was Rs3.338 billion during 2008-09 and Rs3.718 billion during 2009-10, showing an increase of 11.38 per cent.

The original development budget of the ministry during the financial year 2008-09 was Rs6.3 billion, which was curtailed to Rs4.186 billion and the total funds released by the Finance Division amounted to Rs2.546 billion only (40 per cent of the budgeted allocation approved by the Parliament). However, the development budget allocation during the current financial year 2009-10 is Rs8.550 billion.

During 2008-09, 17 projects were completed while 20 new projects were approved and included in the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) 2009-10. The total number of projects in PSDP 2009-10 comes to 101, having a total allocation of Rs8.097 billion, out of which 86 are approved and 15 unapproved. A sum of Rs761.169 million has been released so far during the first quarter and releases due for the second quarter are underway.

Since 2008, many international development partners have extended assistance for the education sector development in Pakistan. Funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) at a cost of 3.5 million pounds, Gender in Education Policy Support Project (GEPSP) is being implemented by the Government of Pakistan with the technical assistance of Unicef.

Its objective is to strengthen the federal education ministry to accelerate progress towards gender parity and equality at all levels of education by 2015.

USAID assisted a project 'Strengthening Teacher Education in Pakistan' (STEP), costing US$2.138 million to enhance the government's capacity to improve policy framework, coordination and the National Standards for Teacher Certification & Accreditation.

USAID assisted the Ed-Links programme - focusing on Teachers Professional Development, Student Learning & Achievement, and Governance - in Sindh, Balochistan, Islamabad and Fata, costing US$90 million. While the USAID funded programme 'Pre-Service Teachers Education Programme (Pre-STEP)' launched at a cost of US$75 million.

Under the Strategic Objective Grant Agreement (SOGA), USAID allocated additional US$121 million for basic education during 2009. DFID entered into an agreement with the Government of Pakistan for a joint task force on education and allocated 250 million pounds.

Under the One-UN Joint Programme, the Technical Working Group on Education comprising ministry officers prioritised JP areas, outcomes, outputs, activities, costs, etc, before its formal launch in association with UN agencies. GTZ is assisting the Education Ministry in areas of education policy review, curriculum reform and textbook development through its 2.5 million euros project titled 'National Basic Education Policy Programme'.

The Curriculum Wing of Ministry of Education started the curriculum review process in 2005, which was put on a fast track and as a result, the curriculum of 31 core subjects have been notified and that of 13 subjects is under the printing process. It is worth mentioning that curriculum for the remaining subjects is under various stages of finalisation.

The Curriculum Wing also organised the training and orientation of about 40 subject specialists of Provincial Textbook Boards, Bureaus of Curriculum, Teacher Training Institutions on National Curriculum, and National Textbook & Learning Material Policy 2007, in collaboration with GTZ in August 2009.

It has developed and finalised the Environmental Studies Textbook for Grade IX & X under the Education Equality Project (EEP). The approval, notification and dissemination of Assessment Tools to measure the competencies of the National Curriculum for Literacy 2007 have been completed.

Under the Cultural Exchange programme, Government of Pakistan is paying subsidy to scholars at the rate of US$200 for Masters and US$300 for PhD candidates per month (now being increased to US$300 and US$400 respectively) in addition to the scholarships offered by the donor countries.

Under the Common Wealth Scholarships, UK, Canada, Brunei Darussalam, New Zealand and Malaysia extended the offer but during the said period, only UK had offered and selected nine candidates, who have already proceeded. This programme is fully funded by the donor countries. In addition to the above schemes, the Governments of Malaysia and Republic of Korea have offered five and two scholarships respectively for undergraduate studies. During the above-mentioned period, the Government of Korea selected three students, who have proceeded.

Government of Bangladesh is offering 14 seats each year for MBBS/BDS for admission in Bangladesh Medical College on self-finance basis under the Saarc quota. The selected students pay fees at par with Bangladeshi students. During the said period, 13 students were selected, who have proceeded abroad.

A special scheme for the students of Balochistan and FATA titled 'Provision of Quality Education' for the students of Balochistan and Fata was launched in 2007 under the directives of the prime minister and president at a capital cost of Rs481 million.

The scheme provides 330 scholarships per year in categories including cadet colleges, public schools, polytechnic, and commercial colleges besides 30 scholarships for private institutions. During the year 2008-09 and 2009-10, 310 and 330 students were given admission respectively in various quality educational institutions on scholarship basis under this scheme.

The 'President's Special Programme for Provision of Quality Education' facilities for 200 tribal students from Fata and settled areas outside NWFP is under implementation. Under this programme, 198 students are studying in various quality educational institutions of the country on scholarship basis.

A total number of 40 'Merit Scholarships' are also granted per year for the students belonging to minorities. During the years 2008 and 2009, a total of 80 (40+40) fresh scholarships were granted to the minority students.

Post your comments

QAU student case
Rawalpindi: Justice Saghir Ahmad Qadri of the Lahore High Court (LHC), Rawalpindi Bench, here on Wednesday directed an MBA final semester student of Quaid-i-Azam University, Kiran Shehzadi, to appear before the Unfair Means Control Committee (UMCC) of the QAU on February 18 for evaluation of her papers.

After issuing the order, the court adjourned hearing in the case till February 24. During next hearing in the case, the court will listen to the claim of the student for being awarded fewer marks in her papers.

Kiran Shehzadi claimed before the LHC that a lecturer in the university due to his personal grudge with her affected her results in the final semester examinations. The university administration has also stopped her results, the petitioner claimed.

Kiran Shehzadi said during her examination a lecturer cancelled her paper on the pretext that she was cheating through her mobile phone and wrote some remarks on her paper. She said that she later appeared before the chairman, who not only cleared her from charges of using unfair means, but also cancelled the comments made by the lecturer.

Advocate Abid Mirza, while representing the university, told the court that she was apprehended while cheating through SMS on her mobile phone. Mirza told the court that the high court was not an appropriate forum for her to appeal.

And UMCC is the proper forum where she has to file her appeal. The deputy controller of examination at the Quaid-i-Azam University, Syed Muhammad Aqeel, also appeared before the court and handed over results to the petitioner.

Legal counsel of the petitioner, on the other hand, asked the court to direct the university administration to appear before the court with her papers.

In another case, the same bench directed the legal counsel of the Inter Board Chairman Committee (IBCC) to appear before the court on January 29 in a case related to the International Islamic University, Islamabad. The IIU has challenged the IBCC decision to withdraw awarding IIU's Diploma of Associate Engineering (DAE) equivalent to intermediate.

Rehan-ud-Din Golra, the IIU lawyer, said that the IIU started a DAE diploma course in 2003 and filed an application before the IBCC to award its diploma equivalent to intermediate.

The IBCC then asked the IIU to put the case before the National Institute of Science & Technical Education (NISTE) curriculum wing for approval of the syllabus.

According to the legal counsel of the petitioner, the NISTE approved the syllabus and issued a no-objection certificate (NOC) to the IIU.

The petitioner's lawyer said that some other institutions, which were required to approve the case, also awarded NOC to the IIU for initiation of this course and finally in the 111th meeting the IBCC allowed the IIU to award the DAE equivalent to intermediate. He said that the IBCC awarded the facility only for one batch of the IIU and later stopped it. The news

Post your comments

Essay Writing Competition
Islamabad: Ministry of Youth Affairs has arranged a National Essay Writing Competition to explore and examine the role of youth for a peaceful and tolerant society in the country.

According to the ministry officials, the competition is for the students of both public and private universities, and aims to promote writing and analytical skills with futuristic approach among the youth along with encouraging research, analysis and argument development on this important theme. The essay topic would be 'How can you tackle youth unemployment through youth-led solutions', and 'How does youth unemployment affects you, your country, town or local community', they added.

The World Bank is seeking submissions from youth aged 18-25. The deadline for submission is March 16. "What can you do, working together with your peers, to find a sustainable solution for job seekers through youth entrepreneurship? Think specifically about the barriers the youth faces in the labour market and how to tackle difficulties in accessing capital for business start-ups," they said.

The officials said, "We encourage all the students to give concrete examples if you have a personal experience as a young entrepreneur and if not, share your ideas about how you would go about creating a business and work opportunities in your local community, town and country." For details on how to participate, visit www.essaycompetition.org

Post your comments

Displaced students protest
Rawalpindi: The internally displaced students from restive areas of NWFP here on Wednesday staged a protest demonstration against the Punjab government for providing them inadequate facilities during their stay in the city.

The students from Malakand, Bajaur Agency, Mohmand Agency and Waziristan Agency, who are studying in the Vocational Training Institute (VTI), Rawalpindi, gathered in front of the 'Jang' building along Benazir Bhutto Road and chanted slogans against the provincial government.

They alleged that the Punjab government promised to provide them education on scholarship in a healthy environment, but unfortunately there was no facility where they were residing. They said that the menu of the hotel, where they were provided accommodation was also substandard.

Rehmanullah Wazir, a displaced student, said that there were around 220 students living in a hotel on government expenses and getting vocational training from the VTI. "We are forced to live in an unhealthy environment and are provided inferior quality food," he added.

The protesters demanded of the Punjab government to fulfil its promises to provide good living environment and food to them during their stay in the VTI.

Post your comments

Role of Youth
Islamabad: About eight million people are abusing drugs of different kinds in the country, among them 0.8 million are heroin addicts who are highly vulnerable to dangerous diseases, said Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) Deputy Director General Altaf Qamar here on Wednesday.

He revealed these figures at a seminar on 'Role of Youth and Society in Drug Abuse Prevention' organised under the auspices of Sir Syed Memorial Society. The seminar was a part of an awareness campaign by the ANF and attended by students of different educational institutions.

A student, Usama Khilji, highlighted the role of peer pressure in drug abuse and said that youth should avoid the company of friends who are taking the drugs of some kind. "Youth should not only avoid the company of drug users, but should also inform the parents of drug users about their habit," he added.

He said that some parents are hopeful that their child would not get indulged in drugs throughout their teenage years and this leads them to ignoring the subject, as they hope that their child remains innocent to teen drug abuse. "This can be a terrible mistake. If teens are unaware of the effects of teen drug abuse, it's likely that they will be more likely to give in to the peer pressure of using drugs," he said.

Altaf Qamar said that the increase in the number of drug addicts was alarming so they started a campaign to create awareness among community members, especially young people.

"We have two functions - one to stop supply and other to reduce demand - and these seminars are a part of efforts to reduce increasing demand of drugs," he said.

Speaking on the occasion, ANF Joint Executive Director Colonel Riaz highlighted the role of ANF in trafficking control and rehabilitation. He said that 95 per cent of the drugs all over the world are supplied from Afghanistan and Pakistan being the transit route was worst affected. "In Pakistan we have curbed the production of drugs and since 2001 there is not even a single factory of drugs left here," he said.

He said that 50 per cent of the population in our country comprises youth and 66 per cent are under the age of 30 who are highly vulnerable to use of drugs.

"Most of the youth become drug addicts due to their peer pressure so it was the responsibility of parents to have check over the activities of their children in order to protect them from drugs," he said. The news

Post your comments