New curriculum to level the playing field for Pakistan's youth
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Pakistan’s divergent streams of schooling, broadly categorized as fee paying private schools, public schooling and religious seminaries (madrasas), often have different curricula, contrasting facilities and uneven teaching standards. The schooling system has been described by many as educational apartheid, which has failed to provide the necessary rounded and quality education to large segments of the youth.
The unequal provision of opportunities on the basis of socio-economic background has effectively restricted large sections of society from productively participating in economic activity, and this in turn has limited the growth potential of the country. Not only does this result in a fractured national psyche, it also hinders positive social transformation and vertical mobility. Moreover, regional movement becomes limited due to localized and divergent ways of learning.
In order to remedy this, the federal government has made the creation of an education system that is inclusive and provides youth from all segments of society the means to develop the necessary skill sets to gain employment and constructively engage with society, a national imperative. As part of this process the Single National Curriculum (SNC) is designed to provide students with up-to-date material that is aligned with international standards and reflects modern pedagogy.
The guiding principles in developing the curriculum, as stated by the Federal Ministry of Education and Professional Training, are to help students develop critical thinking abilities as well as facilitate holistic comprehension of contemporary issues. This is to be done within the framework of the teachings of Qur'an and Sunnah as well as Pakistan’s constitution, and aligned with United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal 4 targets.
The SNC’s goal is to provide a level playing field to the youth of Pakistan, and therefore not only bring about socio-economic development but also ensure national cohesion. It is an important first step towards an equitable education system in Pakistan, and while the trials and criticisms along the way will be plentiful, the government must not be deterred from moving forward with this vital reform.
Javed Hassan
Conscious of the shortcoming of the 2006 curriculum, the authors of SNC have said that it moves away from rote memorization and instead focuses on project and inquiry-based learning. In keeping with the needs of a modern society, the learning experience is designed to prepare students learn how to think creatively and develop analytical skills to solve problems. For example, the new curriculum is meant to emphasize an outcomes-based approach with well-aligned standards, benchmarks and students’ learning outcomes for each subject curriculum, thereby outlining what the students will know and be able to do for the different content areas. All subjects also have comprehensive guidelines for teaching methodologies, assessment practices and textbooks and learning materials.
Another key objective is to inculcate respect and appreciation for different cultures and religions, and promote a culture of nonviolence and peace, human rights, and gender equality. However, critics of SNC fear that the course material for Islamiat (Islamic religious studies) fails to live up to these goals, and continues the trend set by successive previous governments to use Islamiat as a vehicle for indoctrination of extremist values in society. They also argue that the course content for Islamiat has been considerably expanded and unfairly burden young children with excessive memorization of religious texts, which runs contrary to the objective of minimizing rote learning.
There has also been concern expressed that the adoption of SNC will eliminate foreign examination systems presently prevalent in many of the private schools. But here the government has clarified that it will not limit individual schools or schooling systems from adding to the SNC in order to it to expand and enhance the learning experience. While setting a floor on the learning outcomes, it will not restrict or proscribe international standards or certifications.
While the government may not agree with much of the criticism leveled at the SNC, it is vital that they are transparently addressed to ensure its successful adoption across all the education streams, public and private, and in the over 30,000 madrassas. The final SNC rolled out in schools should not only equip students with 21st century skills necessary for employment, but also sensitize them to attitudes and sensibility expected in a progressive Islamic society.
Given the heterogeneity in facilities in many public schools and madrassas, the challenge remains in implementing the SNC uniformly. In order to roll out the curriculum, model textbooks based on the new curriculum are being prepared and open sourced for all schools who want to use them. There are many other areas that will need to be addressed, not the least of which is ensuring that there are sufficient numbers of adequately trained teachers for teaching the new curriculum.
The SNC’s goal is to provide a level playing field to the youth of Pakistan, and therefore not only bring about socio-economic development but also ensure national cohesion. It is an important first step towards an equitable education system in Pakistan, and while the trials and criticisms along the way will be plentiful, the government must not be deterred from moving forward with this vital reform.
- Javed Hassan has worked in senior executive positions both in the profit and non-profit sector in Pakistan and internationally. He’s an investment banker by training.
Twitter: @javedhassan
