Kohistan lags far behind in education

MINGORA: Kohistan is the gateway to the northern areas of Pakistan, but it has lagged far behind in education even though the rest of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa seems to have progressed in terms of school infrastructure.

Kohistan ranked the lowest in education quality out of 141 ranked districts in Pakistan.

According to Alif Ailaan’s Pakistan District Education Rankings 2017, Kohistan ranked 59th nationally in primary school infrastructure out of 155 ranked districts in Pakistan.According to the ranking, Kohistan was ranked the lowest in terms of education infrastructure in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The children in Kohistan have been at a disadvantage to acquire quality education.

Parents are not even provided with the option of sending their children to school, let alone decide which school is the best for their kids to attend. There are not enough schools in Kohistan, particularly for the girls.

The issue of ghost schools, shelter-less schools, teacher absenteeism and a lack of physical facilities all contribute to the poor state of education in the district.

Recently, the struggle to reform school in Kohistan and to ensure they provide quality education has picked up heat, especially in the last few weeks.

There has been an unprecedented increase in activism from parents, who are members of Parent-Teacher Councils (PTC) in Kohistan.

Many PTC members have gathered at UC level to chart out specific demands for KP Education Minister Muhammad Atif Khan, Education Department, members of National Assembly and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly.

The local people are demanding construction of new schools and upgradation of existing ones particularly for girls. They are also seeking the construction of infrastructure, new classrooms, hiring new teachers on merit, creation of a robust monitoring system to deal with teachers’ absenteeism, and bring improvement in examination and testing methods to ensure quality.

Both federal and provincial governments need to come forward for the promotion of education in the region not only at the primary level but also the higher education.