Education is acquisition of skills, wisdom and knowledge rather than the mere accretion of degrees like the Pakistani society believes. Education is the base of success for any nation. It is also the basic fundamental right of every human being to be provided with best of education.
Educational institutions of Pakistan are operated for business purposes and not to shape the young minds of our children. Our young generation is suffering because of the Pakistan’s educational conundrum. Even though, according to the constitution of Pakistan, it is mandatory to provide free education to all children between the ages of 5-16 years. Unfortunately, this fundamental right is being denied in our country.
In Pakistan, 69% of the schools are public schools and the remaining 31% of schools are run by private sectors. There are many issues that hinder in the prevalence of education. As such
- Gender gap; girls are still denied conventional education in our rural areas as compared to boys.
- Cost; private sectors are charging an arm and leg for a quality education whereas public schools are far from providing good education to the children.
- Accessibility of schools; private schools are not in the approach of everyone, on the other hand public schools ensure access but not quality education.
- Development expenditure; only 11% of the total GDP spent on education is reserved for development of schools which is not enough at all.
- Skill education; there are not enough technical or skill educational institutes. More skilled population will result in more job opportunity and potentially decreased crime rates.
To overcome this threatening situation in Pakistan, many reforms are required on the government as well as the social level. Government should try to restore the flailing conditions of public schools. It may not be possible to achieve very soon but bringing uniformity in the curriculum, expansion of technical and skill educational institutions, providing students with scholarships and financial aids can definitely bring about positive changes. Lastly, every citizen of Pakistan should contribute and play pivotal roles in the reformation of our educational system.