Education Policies in Pakistan
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EDUCATION POLICIES IN PAKISTAN
TARIQ RAHMAN Pakistan inherited a class-based policy of education. Vernacular medium of instruction, used in public-funded schooling, was for rural and less affluent urban students. The same group of students could also attend charity-run Islamic seminaries (madrassas). English-medium schooling, used in expensive private and elitist state-supported institutions, was for the elite of wealth and power. In the colleges and universities, however, all students were taught most subjects in English. This system changed as non-science subjects, in public institutions at all levels, came to be taught in the vernaculars. Moreover, English-medium institutions of all levels proliferated making education lucrative business for private entrepreneurs including the armed forces. Education is also used by the state to socialize citizens to address the security concerns of the state and justify high defence expenditure. List of Contents
Contents |
[edit] 1. Pakistan’s Educational Legacy
[edit] 2. Major Policies
[edit] 2.1 Modernization
[edit] 2.2 Vernacularization
[edit] 2.3 Privatization
[edit] 2.4 Ideological Orientation
[edit] 3. Conclusion and Future Trends
[edit] 4. Also See
[edit] 5. References
1. Pakistan’s educational Legacy Pakistan inherited certain policies relating to education from British India of which it was a part from 1846 till 1947. When the British conquered Sindh (in 1846) and the Punjab (1849), they allowed the Islamic seminaries (madrassas) to remain in the hands of the Muslim ulema (the equivalent of clergymen though Islam formally has no clergy). They were financed by local feudal lords or merchants. Public funds were used to create a chain of schools in which Urdu was the medium of instruction in the Punjab, the North West Frontier Province (N.W.F.P), parts of British Baluchistan and some of the princely states now in the boundaries of Pakistan. In Sindh, however, they used Sindhi in schools as well as the lower domains of power and this tradition continues till date.
In short the British left behind a legacy of three streams of education roughly divided along socio-economic class lines: the madrassas catered for rural and very poor children; the vernacular-medium schooling was for working and lower-middle class children; and the English-medium schools were for the middle and the upper classes. Those who overcame the obstacle of English joined their privileged counterparts in the college because that is where the vernacular-medium and the English-medium streams met. This system continues till date and the few changes in it are described in detail later. 2. MAJOR POLICIES
The Pakistani state embarked upon a number of policies ever since the birth of the country. These were: expansion of education and literacy (modernization); dissemination of Urdu (vernacularization); ideological socialization and privatization. Let us take them turn by turn.
2.1 Modernization All education policy documents of the state emphasize the link between modernization and an educated work force (Bengali, 1999). Thus achieving hundred per cent literacy was an avowed aim of all governments. This aim has not been achieved even now though literacy increased from 16 per cent in 1951 to 54 per cent of the population in 2004 (GOP, 2004). School enrolment at the primary (classes 1to 5) is 40 per cent; secondary (6 to 12) is 19 per cent and tertiary (13 to 16 i.e B.A and M.A which are both of two years duration each) is 5 per cent of the population (Lahmeyer, 2004). In short, despite increases in all types of schools the population growth of 2.5 per cent per year combined with an expenditure of about 2.7 per cent of the GDP in 2004 (GOP, 2004) and an average of about 2 per cent for many years have prevented the achievement of the aims given above.
2.2 Vernacularization
The Pakistani state embarked upon a policy of disseminating Urdu as it was considered an identity symbol, next only in significance to Islam itself, of the Muslims of India during the movement for the creation of Pakistan. Official thinking was that Urdu would be an antidote for language-based ethnic movements which could break up the new state. However, Urdu was opposed in this anti-ethnic role by ethno-nationalists, seeking identity through their indigenous languages (Rahman, 1996). However, despite this opposition people have learned Urdu for pragmatic reasons all over Pakistan as it is the language of wider communication within the country. As all literate and many illiterate people (over 50 per cent of the population) understand and speak it, it is much more widely known than the percentage of its native speakers (7.57) would suggest. It is disseminated through the government schools, the government colleges and universities which teach all except technical and scientific subjects in Urdu, the print media, radio and the television. Even illiterates who come in contact with urban people for providing services as well as all city dwellers know Urdu. As Indian films and songs are very popular and they are in a language which is very close to Urdu in its spoken form, Urdu is also spreading through the entertainment industry. The National Language Authority (Muqtadra Qaumi Zaban), the Urdu Science Board and a number of institutions have created both bureaucratic and technical lexicons in Urdu and it is being used by certain provincial governments as well as the lower courts for all purposes. It is also available for use in the computer. Moreover, it is associated with Islam being the language of examination for all the registered madrassas as well as the medium of instruction and of sermons for most of them. In short, Urdu is officially associated with the nationalist Pakistani identity and unofficially with urbanization and the Islamic identity in Pakistan (for both associations see Abdullah, 1976; also see Kamran 1992).
‘Urduization’ is not only opposed by the language-based ethno-nationalists. It is also resisted, though covertly and not through declared policy statements, by the Westernized English-using elite. Vernacularization has affected higher education more than school education which was already in the vernaculars by the time Pakistan was established. Colleges taught the higher secondary classes (11 and 12) as well as the bachelors level (13 and 14) in English as did the universities at the masters level (15 and 16). This started changing as more and more of the non-scientific subjects came to be taught in the vernaculars (Urdu, except in parts of Sindh where Sindhi was used). Nowadays, all subjects except the sciences, engineering and medicine are taught in the vernaculars.
2.3 Privatization
Though it is only recently that the Ministry of Education has officially recognized the trend towards the privatization of education at all levels, there have been private, expensive, elitist schools in the country ever since its inception. When controlled by the Christian missionaries they were said to be necessary in the name of religious tolerance (though they catered more for the Pakistani Muslim elite’s children than for Christians), while those administered or controlled by the armed forces (Public Schools and Cadet Colleges) were said to be necessary for a modernizing country since they prepared leaders. The armed forces now control or influence—through senior military officers who are on their boards of governors or principals – most of the cadet colleges and elitist public schools in the country. While the education policy documents declare that these institutions are financed by the fees paid by their pupils, the state subsidizes the elitist cadet colleges (Public Schools) (Rahman, 2004: 147-148). The armed forces also control federal government educational institutions in cantonments and garrisons (GHQ, 2003), run their own schools and colleges (MOD, 2003) as well as a huge educational network through their philanthropic services run mostly by retired military officers (Rahman, 2004: 53-54).
Besides the armed forces, elitist schools are owned as business empires with campuses in most big cities of Pakistan. These schools charge exorbitant tuition fees and prepare their students for the British O’ and A’ level examinations. There are also a large number of non-elitist English-medium schools in all cities and even small towns of the country. They cater to those who cannot afford the elitist schools but want to give their children better chances in life by teaching them English. Their fees, though far less than those of their elitist counterparts, is still forbidding for their impecunious clientele. Ironically, they do not teach good English as efficiency in that language is a product of exposure to it at home and in the peer group which are available only to the Westernized, urban elite. Privatization is now taking place in the field of higher education. There were 55 public and 51 recognized private sector universities in 2005 while there were only 7 public and no private ones in 1971 when Bangladesh became a separate country and the area now called Pakistan carried the name of the country (HEC, 2005). The first private university, the Aga Khan University in Karachi, was established in 1983. It taught only medicine and created two trends: first, that private entrepreneurs could establish a university; and second, that an institution of that name could teach only one subject. Soon universities teaching lucrative, market-oriented subjects like business studies, computers and engineering proliferated. They charge very high fees thus making them unaffordable for even the middle classes, which undergo much self-sacrifice to teach their children in these institutions. The armed forces, despite being organizations of the state, entered the business of higher education as entrepreneurs. There are at present five universities controlled directly or indirectly by the armed forces. While some cater primarily for the needs of the armed forces themselves allowing civilian students to study only if there are places after their own students are accommodated, most function like private institutions catering primarily for civilian students who can afford their high fees. All private sector universities attract students because they use English as a medium of instruction for all subjects and provide the kind of elitist infrastructure and facilities which distinguish the elite from the masses (such as air conditioning).
2.4 Ideological orientation The state uses education to create a cohesive national identity transcending ethnic identities in which Urdu and Islam are used as unifying symbols. Textbooks of social studies, history and languages are informed by this theme. The other major theme informing them is that of creating support for the garrison state, which involves glorification of war and the military. Islam, the history of Muslim conquests and rulers as well as the Pakistan movement are pressed into legitimating these concerns. Although General Zia ul Haq’s eleven year rule strengthened Islamization of the curricula, these trends were manifested in the early fifties when the first educational policies were created. The text books of government schools, and especially the subject of Pakistan Studies, carry the major part of the ideological burden.
3. Conclusion and Future Possibilities Education, as we have seen, is subordinated to the class interests of the urban, professional, English-using elite in Pakistan. For its political interests this elite has been using the name of Islam, and has strengthened the religious lobby, in the last many years. This policy is said to have been reversed but it may be revived by a future government. The rank and file to carry it on, especially if it takes the form of a low-intensity conflict with India over Kashmir, will come from the madrassas and vernacular-medium schools. Privatization, with its concomitant strengthening of English as an elitist preserve, may lead to ‘ghettoization’ in Pakistan i.e the weak and the marginalized sections of society will remain underprivileged because the education system creates obstacles for them which they may find difficult to transcend. This may have several consequences. First, the most educated people may lose faith in the country and give up on it. Second, the ideological polarization between the different socio-economic classes might increase even further. And, above all, the incentive for reforming Pakistan’s educational system and making it more conducive for creating a tolerant and peaceful society might also decrease. Another trend may be to strengthen the power of the military in Pakistan. As more and more elitist schools and universities pass into the hands of the military, the number of teachers, administrators and business concerns under the patronage of the military will increase. More students will also be influenced by them. This will probably privilege the military’s views about national interest, the future of the country and economic priorities. This, in turn, may further dilute ideas of civilian supremacy which underpin democracies and jeopardize the chances of lasting peace in South Asia. Most of these possibilities do not bode well for the future of the country but it is only by recognizing them that potentially negative educational policies may be reversed.
6. Also See Education in Pakistan; Language policy of Pakistan; languages of Pakistan; Politics of Pakistan; [Education]; [South Asia]; [Kashmir]; [India]; [Peace].Category:education policy
7. REFERENCES
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- Alam. Muzaffar.2004. The Languages of Political Islam New Delhi: Permanent Black and the University of Chicago Press.
- Aziz, K.K .1993. The Murder of History in Pakistan Lahore: Vanguard Press.
- Bengali, Kaiser.1999. History of Education Policy Making and Planning in Pakistan Islamabad: Sustainable Development Policy Institute.
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- GHQ.2003. ‘Federal Government Institutions in Cantonments and Garrisons’. General Headquarters, Pakistan Army, IGT&E Branch (No. 04/77/94-GEI) dated 21 November 2003. http://www.moe.gov.pk/mod3.htm (cited 01 April 2005).
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HEC. 2005. http://moe.gov.pk/enrollmentinPsUniversities.htm. (cited 31 March 2005). Also see http://www.geocites.com/Athens/Parthenon/8107/univ.html (cited 06 April 2005).
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Lahmeyer, Jan.2005. http://www.library.uu.nl/wesp/populstat/Asia/pakstag.htm
(cited 01 April 2005). Last modified by Lahmeyer on 01 March 2004.
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- Saigol, Rubina.1995. Knowledge and Identity: Articulation of Gender in Educational Discourse in Pakistan Lahore: ASR Publications.
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TARIQ RAHMAN
