A critic of single national curriculum policy of Pakistan

Education has been included in the concurrent list in the constitution of 1973. This means the subject of Education will lie with the federal or central Government and the Provincial Government. After the 18th amendment, the subject of Education and all the matters, including curriculum as the main pillar to achieve the nation’s vision and goal, lies with the provincial matters. The education policy aims to target all the citizens that education matters lie within the Provincial Government. But if we talk about the policy of a single national curriculum, every province has its educational matters and budget, then how will it be possible for them to implement the single national curriculum? Provinces, therefore, must either accept the single national curriculum policy or reject it. Here comes the question: if the provinces accept the single national curriculum, will the o/levels administration will accept it or not? And if they will accept, then they have to introduce different subjects for each province. The same is valid with the education system of Madrassahs, which is totally on the other edge; they will agree to this considering the different interpretations of a different school of thought.

Dr. Marrium chughtai (an educational expert and one of the architects of the single national curriculum) said that the single national curriculum is not about equality of Education but about uniform Education in the country. If this is not the case that we will not provide educational equality, there is no point in having a single curriculum. It will only raise the bar of Education.

Pakistan is lacking behind in providing primary Education to children. According to a survey by UNICEF, Pakistan is the second number worldwide, with 22.8 million children in Pakistan who are not attending school. Why are we focusing on a single curriculum if we have such a vast number of students who are out of school? Curriculum comes later; the provision of Education and excess to schools comes first. We have to focus on how we can provide equal education opportunities to all. The 18th amendment was a crucial step in giving Education to provinces so that educational matters would be dealt with within the province. The province of Punjab is more developed and has a higher literacy rate than the other provinces, and the educational policies may differ from that of Baluchistan, Sindh, or KPK.

This is because of the disparities of gender, socioeconomic status of people, and geographical position. Here how will the single national curriculum work? If we have a difference in different factors affecting our education system in every province. Leaving the subject of Education to the provincial Government was a crucial step in the 18th amendment. Every province will have the power to allocate the budget required for the educational sector, and the provinces can have greater scrutiny over implementing the educational policy. The provinces must catch up in providing educational resources, policy implementation, teachers’ training or textbooks, and curriculum. Every province will have a clear picture of why we as a nation are behind in providing this fundamental right to Education. Once every province points out the loopholes and starts to overcome them, the educational system will change. It will not change by only introducing a single national curriculum.

Due to class differences and differences in socioeconomic status, we have different educational systems in Pakistan, which is the major obstacle to bringing uniformity in the educational system as well among the nation. A massive chunk of children of the elite class and upper-class families goes to private schools with high fees; many middle-class family children go to other private schools with considerable costs. And a large chunk of children attends Government schools and Madrassas. There is a significant difference among these educational systems in curriculum, teaching style, textbooks, and examination to a difference in the school environment. This division in the educational system gives rise to stratification in society. The Government can mitigate these differences by fee waivers, access to schools, ensuring the quality of Education in public schools, and competent teachers.

However, the single national curriculum is a step ahead of the basic provision and equal access to Education. Making Islamiat compulsory for all grades or restricting private institutions from teaching Islamiat and Social studies in Urdu is not the solution to our educational system. Our hurdles are, why 22.8 million children are out of school? Why are we not allocating more budget to the educational system? Why despite having teachers but is knowledge not imparted to children? And many more questions are ticking in the educational sector. Making Islamiat compulsory, how are we compensating for minorities? Instead of making an inclusive educational environment, we are marginalizing minorities and stratifying society.

About 3 million children get an education from madrassas, which target a particular sect. Integrating religious Education and fulfilling the secular needs of these madrassas in the single national curriculum will be significant steps towards the inclusion of these madrassas and children who study there in the educational system. They will not feel alien, and new doors and opportunities will open for them.