Taseer tweets against CM's "Daanish"

By Khalid Khattak

GOVERNOR Punjab Salmaan Taseer, who is an ardent follower of internet-based social network, Twitter, is known for his bracing remarks on country’s politics and many other social issues online.

However in his tweets made during the last week he touched upon two important academic issues. While the one is related to Punjab government’s “flagship” educational endeavor, Daanish Schools, the other is linked to increasing ratio of girl students in institutes of higher learning.

Governor Punjab’s comments about the Daanish Schools are evident of the fact that he is totally against the project, a brainchild of Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif and which is being dubbed “the poor man’s Aitchison”.

According to him the Punjab government is spending Rs 4 billion on four Daanish Schools when thousands of public sector schools in the province are without basic facilities of boundary walls and electricity etc.

Mr Taseer’s tweet (available at) reads “Punjab Govt is spending Rs 4bn on 4 Danish Schools whereas there r 14 thousand schools without walls roofs electricity gas…...”

The project has drawn appreciation from some quarters, as it promises quality education to the children of disadvantaged groups of society and is being started from backward areas of Southern Punjab.

Nonetheless the project has been facing immense criticism too by academic circles who fear it will not serve the purpose of promoting the cause of imparting quality education at a wider level.

They are critical of the Punjab government’s initiative arguing there is a need to develop an excellent system of schools as according to them development of some excellent schools in the system will not serve the purpose.

They suggest that instead of focusing some selected schools over 60,000 public schools, most of which are lacking basic facilities like boundary walls, clean drinking water facility, electricity and toilets etc, should be upgraded on a priority basis.

The other important subject touched upon by Salmaan Taseer in his tweet reads “As Chancellor of Punjab Universities can say a quiet revolution taking place. On an open merit system more than 50% of students are female.”

He has termed the increasing female enrolment “a quiet revolution”. Nonetheless the academic circles as well as social scientists are quite worried about the developing situation saying this growing trend might result in shortfall of manpower in future.

They argue often prevailing social norms limit the active participation of women in mainstream and despite having high professional qualification girls do not join professions saying this need immediate attention of those at the helm.

The academic circles also argue that efforts made by parents, teachers, girls themselves and huge investment by the government goes into waste when a professionally qualified girl does not join a profession she has studied over the years.

They also suggest the government to fix quota for boys and girls to maintain the balance besides creating maximum awareness and taking solid measures to ensure that females, especially those getting professional degrees, do take active part in their professional lives.

The story was published in The News International, Lahore on December 6, 2010. However it did not appear in online version of the newspaper.

Army takes lead in flood-hit schools reconstruction

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: The Pakistan Army, using public donations fast, has left the Punjab government far behind in the reconstruction of flood-hit public sector schools.

While the big heads in Punjab government are exhausting their energies in file work and the petty ones waiting for release of funds, the army is doing actual field work and has so far repaired 487 partially damaged schools in four flood-hit districts of the province.

The districts where the schools have been repaired are Dera Ghazi Khan with 89 schools, Muzaffargarh 184, Rajanpur 141 and Layyah 73 schools.

According to sources in the School Education Department, the only contribution from the department in the task was the active part played by the newly recruited educators who worked hard in the whole process and extended the maximum support to the army. They said the amount used for repair was public donations the army received for the flood affectees from philanthropists and common people.



The sources further said the schools repaired were partially damaged, including damaged boundary walls, furniture, drinking water facility, toilets and doors, etc, adding that after repair the schools were also whitewashed and were now fully functional.

An official of the department said that as per estimates, an amount of Rs 63 million had been spent on the repair work of the damaged schools of district Muzaffargarh alone. He said the army was now working to repair partially damaged schools of district Rahimyar Khan. He said the department had initially sought around Rs 1 billion for the damaged schools of Muzaffargarh, however, now an amount of Rs 63 million had been subtracted from the said amount now.



The official confirmed that no repair work could be started by the Punjab government so far, adding that it would start as soon as the required amount was released. He said in the first phase, the damaged schools of district Muzaffargarh would be repaired.

When contacted, Secretary Schools Muhammad Aslam Kamboh confirmed that the provincial government had yet to start repair work of the flood-damaged schools. He said the release of around Rs 1 billion was likely for the damaged schools in the coming days.

He, however, claimed that academic activities had resumed at schools of all the flood-hit districts of the province right after summer vacation. He said in the areas where schools were not functional, the department had made arrangements in rented buildings and nearby houses, adding that many tent schools were also established to continue educational activities. He said the students had been provided new textbooks and majority of teachers had also been provided teaching kits.



It is pertinent to mention here that the Punjab government had identified around 4,193 schools which were either fully or partially damaged by floods in different parts of the province. Of these, over 700 schools were completely damaged while 3,420 were partially damaged by the floods while, interestingly, out of partially damaged schools, over 1,200 schools had been damaged owing to the stay of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) who were provided shelter there.

Source: The News International
02 December 2010.

Red tape hurdle in good governance

Kampus Korridors

By Khalid Khattak



THE lethargic attitude of government officials, their lukewarm response and lack of coordination regarding issues of immediate attention have been a matter of concern for stakeholders over the years.

This not only exposes the so-called good governance but also shows as to how the government remains unmoved and does not bother to introduce reforms to benefit the masses.
The most recent example of official sluggishness and indifference is related to public sector universities of the province.

In the first case, the academic circles are quite critical of top officials of the Higher Education Department Punjab for delaying the removal of dozens of officials of public varsities whose appointment against key posts is being dubbed illegal in the wake of October 5 judgment of a division bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC).

The division bench of the LHC had declared the appointment of Dr Shahid Mehboob Rana as Acting Vice-Chancellor Government College University (GCU) Faisalabad, by the governor Punjab as illegal because it was made without seeking advice of the chief minister.

After the LHC judgment, the Higher Education Department had sought advice from the Punjab Law Department asking whether the department, after the court verdict, was required to process the case regarding cancellation of all orders/notifications issued by the governor without seeking the chief minister's advice.

The department had received the reply on October 14 from the Law Department according to which all such orders without seeking advice of the CM were illegal.

It is pertinent to mention here that since then, no action has been taken against the top officials of different varsities, including a pro vice-chancellor (PVC) and deans of various faculties, and they are still enjoying the coveted posts, illegally.

The department officials claim that the delay was witnessed in collection of data from different varsities across the province. Nevertheless, one wonders as to how the data collection requires so much time in this era of computer technology. However, the stakeholders term the same sheer sluggishness on part of department's bosses was behind the delay as they could not initiate action despite passage of over a month. They say the delay has been greatly irking other eligible candidates who can be posted against these important slots.


Similarly, the stakeholders are also critical of the Higher Education Department for delaying the stopgap arrangements for the University of Education (UoE) and Lahore College for Women University (LCWU) following the expiry of tenure of vice-chancellors (VCs) of both the varsities on November 20, 2010. It is also important to note here that since then both the varsities have been functioning without VCs. As per prevailing procedure, regular VCs are appointed through VC Search Committee process while temporary arrangements are made under which an official looks after the office of the VC.



The terms of four other VCs will expire in the near future, including those of Government College University Lahore's Prof Dr Khalid Aftab (February 25, 2011), Bahauddin Zakariya University (BZU) Multan's Dr Muhammad Zafarullah (January 26, 2011) and University of Sargodha's Prof Dr Muhammad Akram Ch (February 11, 2011) and Fatima Jinnah Women University (FJWU) Rawalpindi's Prof Dr Saeeda Asadullah Khan (March 11, 2011).According to stakeholders, the department being well-informed should take up the cases before expiry of term of a VC so that similar situation does not surface in future and varsities do not suffer owing to absence of top administrators. Academic circles are also demand the government cut through the red tape and introduce reforms for transparent and quick handling of the cases of public interest.

—lachvee@gmail.com


Sources: The News International
Monday, November 29, 2010.

Degree verification saga

PU fails to verify degree of PM's son

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: Punjab University (PU) has failed to decide fate of graduation degree of MPA Abdul Qadir Gilani, son of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, which has been under scrutiny for almost two months now.

The issue was highlighted in early October this year but since then nothing has been heard clarifying the exact situation whether the premier’s son holds a genuine degree or a fake one.

Besides this, it is reliably learnt verification of degrees of almost a dozen of MPs are pending with the Punjab University. According to sources a couple of weeks ago the Higher Education Commission (HEC) had written a letter to the PU asking the varsity to speed up the whole process of verification but to no avail.

It was reported that Abdul Qadir Gilani’s case was amongst those some students who had taken their BA/BSc exam in an examination hall that was never allotted to them.

It was further reported that such cases are dealt by the Unfair Means Committee of the university but the junior Gilani never appeared before the committee despite issuance of three notices. It is pertinent to mention here that Abdul Qadir Gilani, however, denies to have done anything wrong.

According to the sources besides degree of premier’s son, the Punjab University had yet to verify degrees of around a dozen of senior parliamentarians who had graduated from the varsity many years back. They also claimed that the varsity high ups were under tremendous pressure owing to which the whole process had to face delay.

They further said the verification of junior Gilani’s degree had been pending before October when the issue was highlighted for the first time by the media.

PU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Mujahid Kamran could not be reached by The News despite repeated attempts on his cell phone while an SMS was also sent to him in this connection by this correspondent.

However when contacted a senior PU official, seeking anonymity, said the varsity’s verification committee would meet within this week and all the cases would be taken up.

He said the delay was witnessed owing to delay in provision of required documents by the MPs adding Eid holidays and non availability of some members of the committee were other contributing factors.

The PU official denied any pressure saying it was a sensitive issue and needed to be dealt with care keeping in view all the legality. To a question he said the PU would be able to verify all the remaining degrees of MPs by December 2010.

HEC Chairman Dr Javaid R Laghari, when contacted, confirmed that the Commission had written a letter to the Punjab University. He, however, expressed helplessness to share response of the university saying he was himself out of the country and had recently returned back.

(The story appeared in The News International on Wednesday Nov 24, 2010. However it was missing in the online edition of the newspaper!)

Mock forums gainnig popularity in Pakistani schools!

By Khalid Khattak

THE growing trend of organising mock forums by students is a healthy sign as the same not only provides an opportunity to the youth to debate issues of national and international importance but also to know functioning of supreme institutions such as parliament.

The simulation exercise also provides an opportunity to the youth to experience the subtleties of diplomatic negotiations especially when a Model United Nations (MUN) is organised.

Punjab University (PU) students presenting Dr Aafia Siddiqui’s case in a mock court at the varsity last week rejected the allegations levelled against her in a US court.

The mock court, organised by Islami Jamiat Talaba (IJT), also decided to bring back Dr Aafia keeping in view sentiments and feelings of people of Pakistan. It also urged the Pakistani government to take all possible measures for release of Dr Aafia.

Similarly the 1st Indian Mock Parliament was organised by Seeds of Peace, Pakistan, recently and Pakistani students from different education institutions of the city participated in its different sessions and replicated the Indian Parliament.It is pertinent to mention here that Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) Model United Nations Society has been organising Model United Nations (LUMUN) since 2000 to discuss sensitive issues of international concern.

According to Dania Mukhtar, director, Media LUMUN 2010, the annual LUMUN conference is one of the largest student conferences in Asia as it attracts over 1,200 delegates from all over the country and abroad.

At the conference, students assume the role of ambassadors representing different countries and discuss a wide range of issues in a setting modelling various committees of the United Nations, she says.

The initiatives like this have value not just as a mental stimulation but also as a means to understanding each other’s opinions, perspectives and cultural sensitivities.

She says a large reason for the success of LUMUN’s flagship conference is the exposure of its organising team at an international level. “Every March, an eight-member delegation, selected after careful screening, represents LUMUN at the Harvard World Model United Nations, the Leviathan of Model UN conferences. It attracts delegations from world over, including top of the line universities such as Oxford, Princeton, MIT and London School of Economics, to name a few.” “The LUMS delegation has nonetheless consistently been winning the Best Delegation Award at the conference for the past five years, a feat which has lent a big hand to its credibility,” Dania adds.

And that is not the end of it -even a social responsibility programme has sprung up under the LUMUN. The society now trains students from the CARE Foundation’s schools in public speaking and also held a CAREMUN just this summer. The LUMUN is going to be held from 22nd to 26th December, 2010, she concluded.Academic circles are of the view that the government should also take steps to introduce similar kind of ‘mock forums’ at public sector colleges and schools to provide students with an opportunity of a healthy and constructive debate and to explore their hidden potential.

——-lachvee@gmail.com

Source: The News International
Monday, November 01, 2010

No watchdog for private schools!

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: THE powerful private schools mafia has failed the Punjab government’s much-hyped policy of establishing a regulatory body for them despite the lapse of two years.

A high-powered committee, comprising educationists, MPAs and private schools representatives, was formed by Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif in late 2008.

Besides reviewing the existing Punjab Private Educational Institutions (Promotion and Regulation) Ordinance 1984, the committee was given the mandate to propose suitable amendments to the ordinance with the view to establishing a standard for infrastructure, teaching staff and syllabi, curriculum and examination system of the private sector schools.

It was also tasked with establishing fee structure of private schools linked to the standard of service and facilities offered by the institutions.

The committee, though after a delay, had given its recommendations. Afterwards, on various occasions, different government officials claimed that the draft regarding the proposed watchdog had been sent to the Law Department. However, nothing more was heard later on and people are still waiting for the regulatory body.

Besides genuine public concerns, the absence of a regulatory body has also been causing problems for the government as at times it seems unable to implement its policies in private sector schools.

Almost every year, private schools across the province lock horns with the government over the schedule of summer vacation while accepting or rejecting grade-5 and grade-8 uniform examinations by the Punjab Examination Commission (PEC) is another issue.

The failure in enforcement of policies is quite evident from the unbridled working of private schools where people are fleeced as much as a private institute can.

The most recent notification of the Schools Education Department, Punjab, regarding resumption of six working days is likely to meet a similar fate of “defiance” as many elite schools generally observe a holiday on Saturday.

It is important to mention here that on the instructions of the federal government, the Punjab government had announced functioning of schools five days a week instead of six days a week as part of the save energy drive. However, the Punjab government has now announced to resume old weekly schedule according to which Saturday will be considered as a working day.

The notification issued by the Schools Department clearly reads: “All public and private schools will remain open for six days in a week from November 22, 2010 and only Sunday will be the weekly holiday.”

The stakeholders argue that if the government cannot ensure implementation of its policies and rules in private sector schools why they are made part of notifications.

It is also pertinent to mention here that the Punjab government during the tenure of Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi as chief minister of the province was quite ambitious to introduce a regulatory body for private sector schools. However, this could not happen.

The current Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif also took up the issue quite ambitiously and formed a committee to introduce a regulatory body for private sector schools. Almost two years have passed since the formation of the committee but the proposed controlling authority is still not in sight.

Chairman of Chief Minister’s Taskforce on Elementary Education Raja Anwar was quite vocal and active regarding the establishment of the regulatory body for private schools in the beginning. However, it seems he has run out of steam now.

Sources claim that the CM’s taskforce chairman has completely focused the Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) ever since he became its chairman.

According to the sources, the issue of great public interest had been put on the backburner as the Punjab government was facing immense pressure from politicians who own big private schools.
The public has been quite critical of unbridled working of private schools over the years. People have been complaining about the absence of government’s authority in determining fee structure of private schools, heavy registration fee, mandatory purchase of uniform and stationery from the prescribed stores, annual charges and many other monetary matters.

When contacted, Secretary Schools Aslam Kamboh said he could not tell anything offhand about the proposed regulatory body for private schools. However, he said that any policy which seemed to be disputed could not be introduced at a time when academic session was at the peak.

Answering a question, he said mentioning private sector in notifications was important as almost 96 percent of such institutes followed government policies and academic calendar.

The News could not reach Chairman Taskforce for Elementary Education Raja Anwar for his comments.

Source: The News International
Sunday, November 21, 2010

KC barred from action until probe

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: The Punjab Higher Education Department on Thursday formally asked the Kinnaird College (KC) principal not to remove or surrender any faculty member until the committee formed by the college’s Board of Governors submits its report.The KC Board of Governors (BoG) had formed a three-member committee on December 5, to investigate the allegations levelled by the faculty members against appointment of the KC registrar. The faculty members, in a letter addressed to the BoG chairman, dated 28 October, 2009, had alleged that the appointment of Dr Naima Khurshid as Registrar of Kinnaird College was unjustified. A copy of the letter bearing signatures of 97 KC teachers was made available to The News on Thursday. In the letter, addressed to BoG’s Chairman Dr Alexander John Malik, the faculty members expressed strong resentment over the appointment of Dr Naima as registrar, making it clear that she was not acceptable in any of the administrative capacities at the college. They further maintained that her previous professional record and references in the Queen Mary College were overlooked by the principal at the time of her induction. The teachers had also alleged that the tenure of Dr Naima at KC had been full of questionable activities including an inquiry against her in 2008 when she was appointed as Resident Inspector in Intermediate Examinations. However, on December 23, KC Principal Dr Bernadette L Dean fired seven teachers, repatriating four heads of different departments, since they were government employees, to the Punjab government and terminating services of three others serving on contract basis. It is pertinent to mention that Dr Dean had denied allegations of unjustified appointment of the registrar, claiming that no teacher was victimized and the decision was taken in the best interest of the college. She also rejected the allegation levelled against her, reports say. According to the sources in the department, Higher Education secretary Ahad Khan Cheema took a serious notice of the removal of seven teachers, asking the principal to ‘abstain’ from any action against teachers as her own conduct was under question. The principal was asked not to take any action even against contract teachers since the BoG had ordered an inquiry into alleged irregularities on complaint of the teachers, the sources added. They said, after the constitution of the inquiry committee, the KC teachers had also submitted an application to the department, the inquiry committee and the BoG, alleging that they were being threatened of dire consequences ever since the initiation of the probe. A KC faculty member, seeking anonymity, said the principal had removed seven teachers on last working day ahead of winter and Christmas holidays fearing any resentment from the students. She added the news had created great anxiety among the students who had been sending SMSs through mobile phones to all the teachers expressing complete solidarity with them. When contacted, the Punjab Higher Education Department secretary, Ahad Khan Cheema, confirmed that the KC Principal had formally been asked not to take action against any teacher until the submission of inquiry report as it would be taken as ‘a conflict of interests’. “The principal had also been asked not to remove even teachers serving on contract basis,” he added. Talking to The News, Dr Bernadette L Dean said she did not know about the letter from the department since the college was closed, adding, “I’ll only know when the college reopens after the vacation”.

Source: The News International
Friday, December 25, 2009

KC shows door to seven teachers

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: The administration of Kinnaird College for Women on Wednesday terminated the services of three of its faculty members, repatriating four others to the Punjab government.

According to sources, the faculty members along with some others had pointed fingers at the alleged irregularities in recent admissions, besides showing strong resentment over the appointment of Naima Khursheed as the college’s registrar and head of examination department.

A faculty member, seeking anonymity, said the KC Board of Governors in its meeting held on December 5, had constituted a three-member inquiry committee to investigate different allegations leveled by some faculty members. The ‘action’ against teachers is being taken as a victimization act by the administration, the source said, adding that the teachers had reservation over the said committee as no representative from the education department was part of it.

The faculty members repatriated to the Higher Education Department include Saira Malik, Head of Political Science Department, Shibba Syed, Head of Urdu Department, Farrukh Sohail, Head of Islamic Studies Department and Helen Khokhar, Head of Physics Department

The faculty members whose contract services were terminated include Sadaf Munir and Asma Jamil from the Psychology Department and Zarina Rizvi from Urdu Department.

Talking to The News, Sadaf Munir said the teachers were victimized only because they had raised their voice against the administration’s unjust and unfair policies, including the appointment of Naima Khursheed as college’s registrar. She even claimed the said official was earlier removed by Queen Marry College over allegations of corruption. Sadaf Munir alleged the admissions were made even in October and November, despite the fact the process was completed in September. “They are replacing the best with the worst” she commented, saying those serving on contract were not issued any notices as required by the rules. She also alleged that the administration was asking the teachers to remain silent, issuing threats of consequences.

When contacted, KC Principal Dr Bernadette L Dean denied the allegations, saying no one was victimized. The college administration is free to keep or let someone go, the KC being a private institution, she added.

She said some faculty members were repatriated as the administration was planning to induct highly qualified teachers as faculty members. She said the position of registrar was advertised and the appointment was made purely on merit.

She refuted the allegation that contracts were yet not expired, saying Sadaf Munir had even applied for renewal of her contract.

Dr Dean said two of the faculty members were serving the college on contract after their retirement, adding one of them, Asma Jamil, had even asked her (Principal) to relieve her.

She said, during an interview with students sometime ago, she had held Jesus Christ, Nelson Mandela and Gandhi as her ideal, adding, unfortunately, some faculty members were busy in propaganda against her since then,

To a question, she said the fact-finding committee constituted by the KC BoG had yet to submit its report. Those leveling allegations had even taken a U-turn in the said meeting, claiming their signatures on complaints were forged, she said.

When contacted, Punjab Higher Education Department secretary Ahad Khan Cheema said the department had yet to receive the repatriation orders. However, he added, the KC principal was advised to hold-on until the inquiry committee submitted its report as the conduct of administration was under question.

“At this time, it simply looks like clash of interests”, he commented.

He said the KC was neither a government nor totally private institute, adding it was being run under a special arrangement with its representation from different government departments, including education, finance and law, on its BoG. Naima Khursheed was not available for comments.


Source: The News International
Thursday, December 24, 2009

Kinnaird College students complain of mismanagement in examinations

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE:Some students of the Kinnaird College for Women have pointed out insufficient arrangements in the ongoing internal examinations, alleging the mismanagement was creating problems for them.

Seeking anonymity for obvious reasons, they said the issue needed to be highlighted as they believed it was against the traditions of Kinnaird College (KC).

During a visit to the KC on Thursday, it was learnt that around 450 students in first shift and around 650 in the second were accommodated in five rooms for the exam, each room having the capacity of not more than 70 students.

Interestingly, only two teachers were performing the duties as invigilators, the students complained saying later three lower grade staffers of the principal office were also assigned the duty.

The students also complained that the shortage of photocopies of question papers remained a routine matter during the exams which added to their miseries. Such irresponsible attitude had exposed the credibility of the exams, they said.

Nevertheless, they said, Physics paper of FSc classes was delayed on last day of intermediate exams on Thursday for over 40 minutes, causing great anxiety among the students.

The Intermediate exams starting from December 8 concluded on December 17 (Thursday) while bachelors’ exams started from December 14 and would end on December 19 (Saturday).

They said the mismanagement during exams of senior students was quite unfortunate as unlike intermediate level students they were in fact attempting their semester wise annual exams.

It is pertinent to mention that KCites had been raising the issue regarding the lack of facilities in the college. The KC students also highlighted the issue of fee hike, lack of facilities during their protest in May, 2008, demanding the college administration provide maximum facilities to them.

A faculty member, seeking anonymity, said teachers of bachelors classes were appointed as invigilators at a time when classes of bachelor programmes were still going on, affecting the studies of students and causing delay in intermediate exams on daily basis.

This correspondent tried to contact KC Principal Dr Bernadette L Dean in her office on Thursday but was denied entry as she was busy in a meeting. Later, an effort on the principal’s cell phone also went futile as she did not attend the call.

However, talking to The News on cell phone on Wednesday, Dr Dean had denied any mismanagement in the exams. She said the exams were being held as per schedule as mentioned in the college prospectus.

Friday, December 18, 2009

Source: The News International

People question donation collection by private schools

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: AS more and more people have been opting to send their kids to private sector schools in the wake of low quality education and deteriorating standard of public schools, many are getting upset because of certain “unwanted” practices of these private institutions. Besides complaining about heavy amount charged at the time of admission, people have been expressing concern over heavy fee structure and collection of extra funds under various heads on regular basis.The compulsory purchase of books, uniform and other stationery items from prescribed stores by some of the elite schools are some of the other practices, which have been inviting stakeholders’ criticism over the years.However, there are different opinions over collection of donations on part of private schools by students for various noble causes such as helping flood or quake affectees.There are those who favour the move saying such practices motivate the young minds to help people caught in trouble. “It teaches students that how to contribute for rehabilitation and welfare of fellow human beings,” believes Aleem whose son goes to a leading private school.He further said the school management, where his child was studying, used to ask students to bring donations in case the country faced a catastrophe like recent earthquake in Balochistan and floods in various parts of the country. He added, “Though most of the students do not donate from their own pocket yet they learn how to help those caught in trouble.”Nevertheless, there are those who are against the collection of donations by students saying no one should be forced to contribute. “It is unfortunate that most of the schools make it mandatory for students to bring donations, which is totally wrong,” believes Ali whose children go to an elite school too.He said schools must not make it compulsory for students to bring donations, adding in case someone donates less than others he/she is faced with inferiority complex. “This may put students into an embarrassing situation if they cannot arrange money because of one reason or the other,” he added.“I don’t mean that one should not help those who are in trouble but the point is no one should be compelled rather one should be let to share as he/she likes to,” he further added.He said, “The elite schools generate huge funds then why their management do not donate themselves.” Academic circles are also critical of unbridled working of the private schools. Referring to the Punjab government’s ongoing efforts to amend the Punjab Private Educational Institutions (Promotion and Regulation) Ordinance 1984, they have urged the government to take into account all the factors in this connection.At the same time, they have also urged the government to uplift standard of government schools. They believe it is unfortunate that at present the competition is among private schools only as far as quality education is concerned, saying efforts should be made to ensure a comeback of government schools in this competition.

Source: The News International
Monday, January 26, 2009

HRM a challenge to education dept

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: HUMAN resource management is one of the major challenges to the authorities of Education Department in Punjab.Despite the fact that the department has been bifurcated into the School Education Department and the Higher Education Department, there is no proper management of the human resource by the authorities concerned. That is why a shortage of teachers and heads of schools and colleges and other staff is frequently reported, especially in institutions situated in far-flung areas. Another important factor related to this ‘mismanagement’ is reluctance of those teachers to teach in schools and colleges for teaching who have served on administrative posts. It is generally observed that most of teachers who are posted against such posts on deputation reluctantly join teaching later and always wait to be posted on coveted managerial posts.Political influence and teacher’s connections in power corridors are believed to be the main hurdles in proper human resource management as the teachers manipulate the authorities to avail the best opportunities. This is quite evident from the fact that dozens of administrators have been awaiting posting for the last many months after their services were placed at the Education department’s disposal for further posting when the PML-N government came into power in the province in 2008. According to sources in both the departments there are 500 high schools in the province, which are functioning without regular heads. Besides, around 100 colleges are working without regular principals.It is important to mention here that after revival of the divisional commissioners in the province, the Higher Education Department and the School Education Department have been working to revive the divisional directorate of colleges and schools. Under the revived system, directors would be appointed at each division. The sources further said a number of senior teachers who had been awaiting posting for the last many months have “succeeded” in getting their names cleared for posting against the new administrative posts. “The department high-ups could not post these senior teachers in schools despite the fact there was a dire need at various institutions,” the sources said, adding: “The use of political influence cannot be ruled out in this regard.”The academic circles are critical of human resource ‘mismanagement’ at the Education department and they are of the opinion that the government should evolve a comprehensive and transparent policy for the department. Meanwhile, a meeting of the National Curriculum Revision Committee (NCRC) of the Higher Education Commission was held at the commission’s regional centre here last week, which reviewed the existing syllabus of the discipline of Social Work being taught at the institutions of higher learning of the country.The committee reviewed the existing syllabus of the discipline and, after having detailed discussion, developed a new curriculum comprising compulsory, foundation, major and elective courses. The committee members were advised to discuss the developed curriculum within their faculty and send the recommendations to the HEC to finalise the same in the forthcoming meeting. The committee unanimously decided now the degree programme of BS Social Work would be of four years and the subjects of modern day importance like environment, disaster management, poverty, financial management, health hygiene, human rights, gender development, social mobilization and participatory development would be included in the revised curriculum. For effective implementation of BS 4-year programme, the committee recommended that the departments of Social Work at all public sector universities of the country would be equipped with facilities like highly qualified faculties, teachers training, research, computer labs, modern libraries and sufficient infrastructure.The committee recommended that a National Council of Social Work should be established under the umbrella of the HEC to enable students of social work to face new challenges of the modern world. It was also decided that the committee would again meet after two months to finalise the draft of the curriculum.—- lachvee@gmail.com

Source: The News International
Monday, February 09, 2009

Public schools to offer vocational training

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: THE Punjab government has decided to introduce vocational training courses in selected schools of the province in a bid to train schoolchildren in employable skills.The plan envisages imparting vocational training to students of Class 6 and above by providing them with hands-on experience in electronics, woodwork and plumbing etc. In institutions for girls, courses in stitching and dress designing would be offered.At present, technical education and vocational training courses are being offered only at institutions running under the administrative control of the Technical Education & Vocational Training Authority (TEVTA) and the Punjab Vocational Training Council (PVTC).Senior officials of the Punjab Schools Education Department told The News that representatives of the department and the TEVTA were meeting to discuss the launch of vocational training in public sector schools. They said in the first phase, the programme would be launched in 100 schools in each district of the province and this programme would be extended with the passage of time.They said the TEVTA had agreed in principle that it would train schoolteachers. They said the initiative was being taken on special directions of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif.They said funding issues were being discussed these days and according to estimates, Rs 100,000 would be allocated for each school to ensure availability of necessary equipment needed to launch the programme.A senior official of the department requesting anonymity said the basic idea behind the initiative was to impart vocational training to students in addition to general education so that in case if a student fails to continue general education, he/she might be able to have employable skills needed for technical jobs.Talking to The News, Schools Education Department Secretary Nadeem Ashraf said efforts would be made to introduce vocational training courses in maximum schools from new academic session starting from March 2009.He said special classes of vocational training would be organised in schools and students of Class 6 and above would be offered these courses. He said the department had set a target to introduce vocational courses in 3,500 schools across the province by 2010 academic session.

Source: The News International
Saturday, January 31, 2009

PPSC for transparent system of hiring at universities

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: THE Punjab Public Service Commission’s proposals to ensure fair and transparent hiring at public universities were presented before the Punjab Assembly on Wednesday.These proposals were submitted to the Chancellor/ Punjab Governor in PPSC Annual Report 2007. The PPSC had said that it had received complaints about favouritism and nepotism in the hiring process at public universities.According to the report, the acts/ordinances of the universities in the province required presence of a member of the Punjab Public Service Commission in the Selection Boards. The provision was incorporated to ensure neutrality, transparency and equity in the selection process, it said.“Most of universities have failed to frame rules, regulations and procedures for a fair and transparent selection,” it said and added that “the participating members of the PPSC are constrained to perform their duties effectively because of either lack of information or not supplying it altogether for proper examination and scrutiny.”The report read that an inquiry had revealed that universities invariably did not even send agenda and minutes of the meeting of the Selection Boards to the Commission for the purpose of checking their veracity. Unfortunately universities even do not have a mechanism to redress maladministration, it added.The PPSC has proposed the Governor/ Chancellor to circulate these instructions to universities. It said all universities should submit their laws, rules and regulations and procedures for selection to the PPSC for scrutiny and examination inviting proposals/ comments for their improvement/ amendments.It proposed that scrutiny of applications should be conducted by a neutral committee of a university headed by the registrar in accordance with conditions of eligibility advertised. It also proposed that rejection letters should be issued to ineligible candidates giving opportunity of appeal within 10 days to the vice-chancellor. The commission report also proposed that only approved minutes by the members of the Selection Boards be submitted to the Syndicate for approval and after its approval the results be declared and issued to the press, displayed on the notice board and websites of universities.The PPSC report also highlights that the standard of professional competence and general awareness of the candidates is continuously on the slide.Maintaining that the PPSC is a statutory body designed to assist the provincial government in selecting human resources for its smooth functioning, the report states the Commission has observed that education standard of the applicants has been on the decline. It reveals that the percentage of failure is the highest in the subject of English. “Mushroom growth of private educational institutions, affiliated with universities without due diligence and adherence to minimum norms and standards, have resulted in the low quality pass outs”, the Commission observes.The report says that educational system was neither need-based nor demand driven resulting in wastage of financial as well as human resources adding graduate pass outs appear to be a perpetual drag on the society. “The impressive academic credentials do not match with the performance both in written exam and interview, with the result that 1,179 posts remained unfilled during 2007 despite high rates of educated unemployed”, the reports claims.The PPSC has underscored the need of quality education at universities, colleges and schools. It has also recommended a uniform system of evaluation for examinations at universities and colleges awarding degrees with a view to reduce the disproportionate edge candidates have owing to marking standards.

Source: The News International
Friday, February 06, 2009

Major changes likely in BA/BSc, MA/MSc exams

By Khalid Khattak

Major structural changes in the Punjab University’s BA/BSc and MA/MSc examinations are in the offing and are likely to be applied to those candidates who will appear in these exams from varsity’s affiliated colleges or privately from this year.These changes include reorganisation of aggregate system of marking, allowing those candidates of BA/BSc for supplementary exam who fail in two papers and introduction of supplementary exam at MA/MSc level.It is important to mention here that students and teachers have been criticising the PU administration for introducing 45 per cent of aggregate at MA/MSc level a couple of years ago. Under this system, 40 per cent is pass marks of each paper while a candidate has to make 45 per cent total aggregate to pass the exams, which means if a candidate even gets 40 or 41 marks in each of the five papers of MA/MSc, he/she is considered fail.This aggregate system was introduced in 2005 during tenure of VC Lt Gen (Retd) Arshad Mehmood but despite strong resentment from students and teachers, the PU administration could not change it and students continued to suffer. Similarly, students and teachers have been expressing concerns regarding non-availability of an important option for private candidates and those of affiliated colleges of the Punjab University i.e. supplementary exams at MA/MSc level. At present, if a candidate fails in any one subject of MA/MSc exams, he/she has to wait for almost a year to sit in the annual exam, as PU does not offer supplementary exams at this level. Undoubtedly, this has been delaying the youth to start their professional careers, while its worst impact on female students, keeping in view prevailing social norms, could not be ignored. The third major structural change on the cards is allowing all those candidates of BA/BSc exams to sit in supplementary exams who would fail in two subjects. At present, a candidate who fails in only one subject in BA/BSc annual exams is eligible to appear in supplementary exam while all those failing in more than one subject have to appear in annual exam. A senior PU official said keeping in view growing concern of the students and their parents, the university administration was seriously mulling over to bring reforms in the examination system. He said PU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Mujahid Kamran had held several meetings with the Controller of Examinations Zahid Kareem in this connection recently. He further said the supplementary exams at MA/MSc level would also help the university to generate revenue, adding it was too important since universities were facing severe cuts in grants from the government.A consensus has been developed to bring revolutionary changes in the examination system so that candidates might be facilitated to the maximum extent and they might not suffer because of the system, he added.Zahid Kareem talking to The News said there had been deliberations on several important and possible changes in exams at BA/BSc and MA/MSc level. He said issues like aggregate system and supplementary exams would soon be placed before the academic council for final approval.

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Source: The News International

Monday, February 02, 2009

MA English result exposes colleges’ performance

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: The recently declared result of MA English Annual Examination 2008 has exposed disappointing performance of public sector colleges as a small number of students from these institutions could pass the exam.A study of result revealed that in most of the colleges those passed the exams were late college students (LCSts), which means they had repeated the exam otherwise, pass percentage overall as well as of individual colleges would have dropped further.According to result gazette issued by the Punjab University (PU), a total of 110 students had appeared in the MA English Part-I exam from Government MAO College while only 16 could pass out of which five were fresh candidates and 11 LCSts.From the Govt Queen Marry College 18 students had appeared in the said exam but only one of them could pass it. A total of 33 students appeared in the exam from the Government College, Township, and only eight could pass out of which only two were fresh candidates while six were LCSts.Thirty eight students appeared in the exam from the Govt Islamia College, Railway Road, while only eight could pass the exam out of which four were LCSts and four were fresh. As many as 16 candidates appeared from Govt Islamia, College Civil Lines, while only four could pass the exam out of which three were fresh candidates.The Govt Fatima Jinnah College for Women, Chuna Mandi, however, produced a comparatively better result as 48 candidates appeared in the exam from this college and 28 were declared passed out of which 19 were fresh candidates while nine were LCSts.A comparison of the government colleges of the provincial metropolis and other institutions of the province as well as those of private colleges also highlights that the overall result is not so encouraging in MA English this year. Only 15.6 percent of the candidates could pass the MA English Part-I Exam while in Part-II the pass percentage remained 37.09. According to PU Additional Controller of Examinations Malik Zahir, a total of 8,800 candidates appeared in the Part-I exam out of which only 1,373 could pass the exam. A total of 3,157 candidates appeared in Part-II exam out of which 1,171 were declared successful, he added.Talking to The News a number of students criticised the PU for introducing the changed aggregate system of marking a couple of years back. They said the overall pass percentage had sharply been declining ever since the university had introduced 50 percent aggregate a must to pass the exam.A student, Awais, said the aggregate system was quite harsh for students of colleges unlike for students of universities. Explaining his point, he said students of government colleges who appeared in the MA English exams conducted by the Punjab University (PU) had to sit in the annual exam unlike university students who appeared under semester system at their respective universities.“It is really difficult for college students to achieve this score under the annual system of exams”, he added.Another student said it was quite ironic that the government could not ensure uniformity in the exam system. “Students of colleges are at clear disadvantage”, he said adding, “They (college students) don’t get marks for attendance and assignments as awarded to students under semester system at he universities.”A lecturer, seeking anonymity, said a number of factors were responsible for poor results especially in the MA English exams. He was of the view that “Education being imparted at government institutions right from primary level does not prepare students to be creative and imaginative rather it encourages rote-learning among the students.”He further said since subjects like English literature required creative and analytical approach by the students, all those lacking this had to face trouble while attempting the exam. There are other issues too like shortage of teachers and lack of facilities at government colleges, he added. He, however, also urged the government to ensure a uniform examination system. He said the prevailing disparity was certainly a matter of great concern as colleges and universities were producing different kinds of students despite the fact they were pursuing similar degree. He was of the view that the PU should introduce supplementary exams for MA programmes as a candidate had to wait for almost a year for annual exams each time even if he/she had failed in a single subject.

Source: The News International
Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Government takes over 10 JD schools

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: THE Punjab government has appointed administrators in ten selected schools of banned outfit Jamat ud Dawa after intelligence agencies reported that these institutions were promoting extremism.As many as 26 educational institutions of Jamat ud Dawa are operating in various parts of the province but the government has appointed administrators in only 10 selected schools.Sources revealed that following a ban imposed on the JD, intelligence agencies informed the government that ten of JD educational institutions in various parts of Punjab were promoting extremism. “Special lectures promoting Jihad are delivered to students especially at the time of assembly,” sources quoting intelligence reports said.A senior official of the School Education Department seeking anonymity said the move was aimed at resumption of academic activities at JD-run institutions especially in view of the upcoming matriculation annual examinations. He, however, said monitoring will also be job of the administrators. He said the administrators took over on Friday. To a question, he said teachers would not be replaced and they would continue to teach at these institutions.When contacted, Abdullah Muntazir, a spokesman for JD, said the organisation had always worked within the law adding discipline had been the top priority at Dawa schools. He said if there was any JD policy to promote non-academic activities or extremism among students then it would have been followed in all schools not only in ten schools. He said Dawa schools were not only registered with the government but these schools followed government approved syllabus. He said the government had asked principals of Dawa schools to coordinate with the administrators. Education and charity institutions of Jamat ud Dawa were raided on December 11 and its offices were sealed in compliance with the UN Security Council ban imposed in connection with recent Mumbai attacks. Following the ban, the government planned to take administrative control of the educational institutions run by the banned organisation.According to a notification issued by Punjab School Education Department, Muhammad Ashraf (Basic Pay Scale 19) Ex Senior Headmaster has been appointed administrator at Al-Dawa ModelHigher Secondary School, 8-KM Multan Road Lahore, Tanveer Ahmed (BPS-19) Senior Headmaster Government High School Qila Maseeta, Muridke, Sheikhupura at Al Dawa Model School, Al Dawa Centre Markaz-e-Tayyaba, Muridke, Sheikhupura, Humayun Shahid Rashid (BPS-19) Senior Headmaster Government Tariq High School, Sheikhupura at Al Dawa Model High School Shami Road, Sheikhupura, Muhammad Munir Mughal (BPS-19) Senior Headmaster Government Model Town High School Gujranwala at Al Dawa Model School, Kashmir Road, Peoples Colony Gujranwala, Abdul Salam (BPS-19) Senior Headmaster Government High School, Fort Abbas, Bahawalnagar at Al Dawa Model School, Fort Abbas, Bahawalnagar, Muhammad Yousaf Warraich (BPS-19) Senior Headmaster Government Comprehensive School, GT Road Gujrat at Al Dawa Model School, Shadman Colony Gujrat, Muhammad Altaf (BPS-19) Senior Headmaster Government Rafa-e-Aam High School Multan at Al Dawa Model School, Tareen Road Multan, Hamid Saeed (BPS-19) Senior Headmaster Government High School Kehror Pacca, Lodhran at Al Dawa Model School, Kehror Pacca Lodhran, Muhammad Riaz (BPS-19) Senior Headmaster Government MC High School, Okara at Al Dawa Model School, Canal Road Okara and Muhammad Tariq Malik (BPS-17) Headmaster Government High School, Pir Mahal, Toba Tek Singh at Al Dawa Model School, Bhussi Road, Khan Da Chak, Pir Mahal, Toba Tek Singh.

Source: The News International
Saturday, December 27, 2008

Report sought from private schools charging Rs 2,500 fee

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: THE Punjab Schools Education Department has asked the leading private schools, which have been charging Rs 2,500 and more as minimum fee per student per month, to send details regarding their fee structure being implemented from class 1 to class 10.The News has learnt that the department aims to present the data before the committee recently constituted by the chief minister to review the existing Punjab Private Educational Institutions (Promotion and Regulation) Ordinance 1984, and to propose suitable amendments in the Ordinance with the view to establish a standard for infrastructure, teaching staff and adopted syllabus, curriculum and examination system of the private sector schools.Officials of the department privy to the developments said the government was committed to cap fee structure of the private schools, as there had been growing concern by people in this regard. They added in return, the government would also reciprocate by giving certain relaxation in different types of taxes, etc.They said the Secretary Schools Nadeem Ashraf had recently ordered uniform registration policy under which all the private schools would be registered for a period of five years. “Earlier, there was no such uniform policy, which was a matter of great concern for the private schools”, they added.The officials further said since the Punjab Private Educational Institutions (Promotion and Regulation) Ordinance 1984 did not mention specific period of registration, in many cases open-ended registrations were also granted to private schools in past. “This created a lot of confusion among the stakeholders”, they said, adding, “The uniform registration policy will be a great service for private sector as well as for the department.”A senior official of the Schools Education Department, seeking anonymity, said that never in the past elite private schools had been asked by the department to share details about the fee structure. He said the data would be presented before the Chief Minister’s special committee so that it might propose relevant amendments in the 1984 Ordinance necessary to cap fee structure of private schools. He said there had been great concern among the stakeholders that elite private schools had been charging heavy fees with frequent increases while facilities provided to students both in term of academic and infrastructure were not in proportion to the fee charged. “There have also been reservations about various kinds of other charges being colleted by private schools”, he said adding, “The mandatory purchase of books and uniforms from prescribed stores was another issue”. The official further said all those elite schools, which had been offering matriculation stream and charging Rs 2,500 and more as monthly fee had been asked to send details about fee structure to the department.To a question, he said fee charged from students seeking foreign qualifications like O and A level had not been asked by the department.It is pertinent to mention here that the Punjab government is currently working to establish an autonomous regulatory institution to oversee fee structure, registration, quality assurance and other aspects of private sector schools and in this connection, a committee comprising educationists, MPAs and private schools representatives had already been formed.The committee would propose structure, constitution and legal framework for an autonomous regulatory institution for private schools operating across the province.

Source: The News International
Friday, January 23, 2009

PU leases land to telecom companies

By Khalid Khattak

LAHORE: THE Punjab University (PU) in a bid to generate revenue in the wake of severe cuts in grants by the federal government has leased its land to three cellular mobile companies for installation of towers.It is learnt that cellular mobile companies Warid Telecom, Mobilink and Zong have entered into a ten-year agreement with the PU.A senior PU official said university authorities felt the need to find ways to generate revenue as public sector universities were now receiving “meagre” funding from the Higher Education Commission.He said besides installation of towers, the PU administration had also invited telecom operators to use campus space for advertisement purposes. “The initiative is aimed at generating funds by allowing companies to advertise their products through billboards and temporary stalls on the campus etc,” he said.Talking to The News, a senior PU teacher seeking anonymity expressed concern over the initiative. He said quoting research reports that tower radiations were harmful and the university administration should have conducted a study of the impact of radiation on students, teachers and employees of the Punjab University. The varsity should have taken steps to counter any such danger, he added. “Unfortunately, the PU administration did not conduct any study or survey before entering into the agreement,” he claimed.There are more than 65 million mobile phones users in Pakistan and it is expected that this figure may increase to 80 million by 2010.The PU official said mobile phone companies were investing a lot in expansion of the infrastructure to meet the rising demand. He said antennas were mounted on towers and would not expose students and teachers to harmful radiation.Resident Officer (RO-II) Malik Zaheer said the PU would receive Rs 6 million annually by allowing cell phone companies to install towers on the campus. He said agreement was signed for a period of ten years with 10 percent increase annually.To a question, he said such towers were installed everywhere and did not have any harmful impact on the people. “We, however, have leased land with thin population in proximity,” he said.Malik said the areas where these towers would be erected are hostel side water tank No 3, near Shah Di Khoi, PU New Campus, near the university’s main library and area adjacent to residential colony of the varsity staff. When contacted, PU registrar Prof Dr Muhammad Naeem Khan said the agreement was technically and economically feasible.

Source: The News International
Friday, January 16, 2009