The implementation of new uniform curriculum across country may not be possible by April 2020 deadline as another National Curriculum Council (NCC) meeting on Monday ended without official representation from the government of Sindh and the Ministry of Interior.
Minister for Education and Professional Training Shafqat Mehmood in a press conference held after NCC meeting said his ministry is trying its best to finalise the new curriculum as soon as possible. However, he feared, it will not be possible to meet the previously set deadline due to certain reasons. He said the experts in the Monday’s meeting have also suggested extending the deadline.
Organised by the education ministry, the day-long NCC meeting, which was attended by stakeholders from the public, private and madressah education systems, the higher education sector and the provinces, once again saw no official representation from the Sindh government. Earlier in January also, no representative from the Sindh government had participated in the first meeting of the NCC.
According to sources, Sindh government has some concerns over newly devised curriculum due to which the government has refrained from participating in the meeting. Moreover, no official from the ministry of interior, which is also main stakeholder, attended the key meeting.
According to Mehmood, his ministry is trying to take all relevant stakeholders into confidence on the matter. “We are hopeful that in the next meeting, representation from all provinces including Sindh will be ensured,” he added.
The minister said all other quarters have agreed with that a uniform curriculum is need of the hour, adding that almost all private schools have also shown their consent in this regard.
In reply to a question that how private schools can welcome such a strategy of the government when they have already rejected fee deduction ruling of the Supreme Court, the minister said that a permanent head of the Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Authority (PEIRA) will be appointed soon and afterwards a comprehensive plan in this regard will be formulated and all private schools will be bound to follow that policy. He said the Supreme Court decision on the subject needs a little interpretation to remove some confusion among parents and the children.
The minister said he has personally suggested the council to introduce a single national certification system across the country, adding that all such things require time and will be completed gradually. He indicated that a core curriculum will be introduced at all levels of education in mutual consultation with all the stakeholders.
Mehmood recalled that the literacy rate has fallen in the last few years from 60 to 58 percent, adding that more than 22 million children in the country are out of schools. He deplored that the country has so far failed to provide quality education and a uniform curriculum to the students. He claimed that his ministry is taking steps to bring a positive change in the education sector.
Over non-cooperation of Sindh government as its provincial education minister never attended the NCC meeting, the sources in the Higher Education Commission (HEC) and education ministry disclosed that the subjects of education and curriculum have been devolved to the provinces under the 18th Amendment, the provincial government of Sindh does not want to give credit to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) over the matter.
Talking to Daily Times, Tanzeemul Madaris Pakistan President Mufti Muneebur Rehman said seminaries are ready to cooperate with the government but there should be practical measures to achieve a uniform education system, as previous governments including the PTI’s in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have failed in this regard.
