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Our kind of education: Students kafalat plan
Our kind of education
March 10, 2008: The Punjab governor has
described education as the answer to terrorism. This sounds like a cliché, given
the fact that so much has been written about education and the social ills that
it staves off. There is, of course, no denying the fact that it is a vital
weapon against scourges of many kinds, including a terrorist mindset. But when,
despite plenty of sensible advice on the subject, there is no effort to improve
standards, it becomes clear why the kind of education we have in Pakistan can
hardly be considered as the appropriate tool. The statistics are telling. As
opposed to the recommended four per cent, a mere 2.3 per cent of GDP is
allocated for education in a country where only half the adult population is
literate. Enrolment rates may be increasing but are offset by the population
growth rate and high number of dropouts, which at the primary school level is a
whopping 50 per cent - and considerably higher among girls. The decay is
palpable: it has manifested itself in the poor conditions of the schools many of
which lack even the basic infrastructure. Besides, teacher absenteeism and
shortage are as discouraging for students as the poor training of instructors
who are simply not equipped to instil the love of learning in young minds. The
absence of community participation among parents has also caused the situation
to deteriorate. Poverty-stricken parents believe that putting their child to
work is infinitely more profitable than the dividends of the formal school
sector. This general picture provides an insight into why education in Pakistan
can hardly be considered a weapon to fight terrorism.
But, where
education is concerned, it is not only its enervated state that is responsible
for our failure to combat terrorism; it is also the content of what is being
taught. Educational reforms have long been in the pipeline, especially after the
events of 9/11. Before that - and the trend continues - a whole generation fed
on obscurant ideologies propagated by madressahs emerged to wreak devastation in
the world. Terrorism, in fact, became a part of education. However, it would be
unfair to pin the blame on madressahs alone. The seeds of regressive thought
have always been there in the national curriculum. The glorification of the
armed forces and jihad, the subjugation of feminist thinking, the focus on
religious and nationalist ideology and constant moralising and prudery continue
to have their impact on malleable young minds. It is not the spirit of enquiry
that is being infused in children; they are being subjected to dogmatic
interpretations of whatever is perceived as the universal truth. This stunts
their vision and leaves them open to negative influences. True, it will take
years before even the basic steps can be taken to improve schools or to achieve
high literacy levels. But there is nothing to stop the emergence of a more
progressive curriculum that would open minds rather than lead them towards
extremist thoughts. Dawn
Students kafalat plan launched
Rawalpindi: Sultana
Foundation, a welfare organisation, has launched 'Students Kafalat Programme' to
educate the most deserving students who are unable to continue their studies due
to financial constraints.
Giving details about the programme, Sultan
Foundation Chairman Dr Naeem Ghani told the journalists here on Sunday that the
Foundation is catering to the needs of over 7,000 deserving students belonging
to different rural areas of Rawalpindi/Islamabad and Azad Jammu and
Kashmir.
He said despite that a large number of students are deprived of
educational facilities and the Foundation has started this programme to seek
philanthropists' help for educating these students and make them useful
citizens.
He said that under the programme, expenditure of a secondary school
student is Rs 300 while for a college student it is Rs 600 per month. He said
any body can contribute under this programme and to finance one student means to
make a whole family self-reliant and by supporting this we can bring social and
economic revolution in the society.
Dr Ghani said that out of total fee the
Foundation bears 75 per cent while students pay only 25 per cent. He said that
45 per cent students are unable to pay even 25 per cent of the fee and the
Foundation has also to bear these expenditures.
Dr Naeem Ghani said that the
Foundation is running five colleges, two high schools, 25 Masjid schools and, so
far, it has delivered education to over 100,000 students besides providing
technical education to some 2,000 students who are serving in different
departments.
He said that the Foundation is also providing technical
education that includes electrical and mechanical engineering, electronics,
telecom and computer hardware. Ghani said over three crore students are deprived
of basic education and the Foundation plans to expand its network to
underdeveloped areas of the country.
He urged the civil society to support
them in this noble cause of educating every child in the country. The Nation
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| Education News | | Updated: 25 May, 2012 |
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