LAHORE: Teachers across Punjab on Tuesday lamented the government’s proposal to set up an authority which would test anyone interested in joining or continuing with the profession, reasoning that it was an attempt to disgrace educators who have already been in the field for more than 20 years.
As part of the plan, the Punjab government’s proposed body – similar to the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council or Bar Councils -- will issue licenses to the most qualified teachers, after they pass an eligibility test.
Taking umbrage at the suggestion, Rana Liaqat Ali, General Secretary of the Punjab Teachers’ Association (PTA), told Arab News: “A teacher joins the profession after passing the exam of the National Testing Services (NTS) which is specially designed for the purpose. There is no need of any other test after that. Instead, the government should provide training and courses for the teachers.”
He added that the PTA would resist any such move, while the Pakistan Private Schools Federation (PPSF) expressed its reservations for the proposal, too.
If the plan sees the light of day, the license will be made mandatory for in both the public and private sectors. “Yes. We are contemplating licensing the teachers. Not only teachers but teacher trainers, head teachers and administrators, too,” Imran Sikandar Baloch, Secretary of the Schools Education department, confirmed to Arab News.
The idea is one of several submitted to the Punjab government after it had invited suggestions to improve the education sector in the province. According to the Pakistan Economic Survey of 2017-2018, the literacy rate of the country is 58 per cent – comprising 70 per cent males and 48 per cent females – while the total number of teachers in the same period totaled 1.7 million, as compared to 1.6 million from the previous year.
The data showed a 5.9 per cent increase in the number of people interested in joining the profession, with the number of teachers is expected to rise to 1.8 million this year. As per data collected by the PPSF, there are more than 2,00,000 private schools in the country while the number of public sector schools is 131,000. The number of teachers in the public sector is 0.7 million while 1.5 million teachers are part of the private sector.
Deducing that the move, if implemented, would add more pressure on already strained resources, Kashif Mirza, President of PPSF, said: “We are already facing a shortage of teachers in schools. We train the teachers after hiring them. It is not an appreciable step of the Punjab government.”
“The teaching profession is not very attractive for new entrants… such steps would lead to a further shortage of teachers,” Mirza said.
However, activists working to improve the education sector, voiced their full support for the initiative. “Teachers in the profession for 20 years share the responsibility for the low quality of education in government schools. Those who know their subjects and how to teach should welcome any effort to improve learning,” Musharraf Zaidi, an activist, said.
