Islamabad
Just look around and you’ll find many chains of private educational institutions, but the Roots International Schools Private Limited stands out for high standards of learning and rapid growth over the years.
CEO Walid Mushtaq credits the accomplishment to the founder of his education system, the third largest in the country, her successors and staff members.
“Roots (schools system) was the brainchild of my mother, Riffat Mushtaq, who began it in 1988 and successfully took it forward. I’m the second generation to take over the reins. With an aim to significantly contribute to the improvement of the country’s educational system, I’m trying to take it to the new heights through enrichment of financial processes, business process re-engineering, expansion with proper support systems to sustain it, educational incentives for underprivileged students, and partnerships and collaborations with international education bodies. Also, we’ve a team of dedicated, committed and resilient staff members. Hence, it’s the three decades of hard work, dedication and commitment, which is behind our success,” he told ‘The News’ in an interview. With around 16,000 students and 65 campuses in more than 10 cities, the Roots International Schools system offers continuous education up to undergraduate level.
According to Walid Mushtaq, his educational institutions are striving to develop students with strong problem-solving and analytical abilities and to equip them with the skills they need to succeed in their higher education and future careers.
“Our graduates are independent thinkers with the ability to create and innovate. Our focus is on responding to the need of Pakistan to make the critical transition to a knowledge- based society by providing the youths with an opportunity to get quality, modern education and tap their potential excellence,” he said.
The Roots International Schools CEO said his schools nurtured students in all aspects of their personality. “We provide students with exciting opportunities to display their talents and skills and think aesthetically, analytically and creatively. We transform dreams into reality when our students break world records and bag top positions in national and international examinations, attain perfect scores in SAT-II exams, and get admission to the top national and international universities with full scholarship. Also, we provide pathways and necessary support to our students to fulfil dreams,” he said.
Walid Mushtaq felt the biggest challenge for a progressive educational organisation in the modern times was how to assimilate its position and thrive its innovations, especially when scientific, technological and socioeconomic changes had been taking place at a fast pace. He said all those associated with the education system from school owners to teachers to curriculum designers should have a better understanding of the pedagogical needs of students to help them prepare for the future. “We have to think progressively about the decades to come. The latest research shows many of the future jobs don’t exist today so we’ll have to equip our youths with knowledge, skills and innovations, which they require in future to do well in their respective professions,” he said.
The Roots International Schools CEO said his education system had launched two higher education projects, one in Lahore and the other in Islamabad, and was exploring avenues for expansion to give the country’s youths better access to modern education.
He denied private schools and colleges had exploited education for maximal profit. “It’s a misconception. The private sector has a great contribution to the promotion of education in the country. I’ve visited schools and colleges around the world, especially in the west, but still feel the standards of learning are better in our educational institutions by and large. We give application-based modern knowledge, provide them with excellent educational and research facilities, and train them well on excelling practical life,” he said.
Walid Mushtaq said he had turned down many offers to open educational institutions abroad as he was more interested in offering modern quality education to own people than those of a foreign country.
He agreed Pakistani universities were ranked very low internationally and said the varsities, especially those in the public sector, which got massive government funding, needed to improve their educational standards, especially the quality and scope of research, to compete with foreign competitors.
The Roots International Schools CEO said private schools made good, market-based payments to their teachers in view of their education, experience and skills.
“We’re in serious financial problems last year when the government stopped us from increasing tuition fee despite a steep increase in expenditure due to high inflation and security challenges, but even then, we, most private schools, are good pay masters,” he said. Walid Mushtaq said the public-private partnership would help advance the cause of education in the country.
He appreciated the ‘Jang Group’ for organising an educational expo and said the initiative would ensure connectivity of all stakeholders from schools, colleges and universities to students to parents for mutual benefit and thus, improving the country’s education system.