Uniform syllabi to help end disparity in education system: GCU referendum

LAHORE: As per results of a youth referendum at GC University Lahore, 60 percent of the country’s youth believes that the Single National Curriculum (SNC) will help reduce the socio-economic disparities of the education system.

The GCU’s Debating Society had conducted the youth referendum on SNC among the participants of the first All Pakistan Summit of Student Societies 2021 in which students from more than 32 universities across the country participated.

According to the results, about 60 percent of the country’s youth believes that the Single National Curriculum would help reduce the socio-economic disparities of the education system.GCU Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Asghar Zaidi said the main objective of the youth referendum was to gauge the student body’s public opinion about the newly introduced Single National Curriculum. “The survey garnered an amazing response; 442 votes were received and analyzed in order to make up the results,” he said.

The survey included agendas which talked about various aspects of the SNC and how it would impact the education system of the country. When asked whether the SNC would help reduce the socio-economic disparities of the education system. 59.95pc of the voters said yes, 34.61pc said no while 5.42pc were undecided in their decision.

In the second agenda, it was inquired if the voters believed that the SNC would help Pakistan’s education system compete with the international standards of education. 44.79pc said attested yes, 45.47pc said no and 9.50pc remained undecided.

The third agenda focused on the representation of minorities and women and if the representation co-opted in SNC was culturally appropriate. 54.07pc said yes, 35.06pc said no while 10.85pc were unsure.

The fourth agenda centered on National Unity. It inquired if the voters believed national unity would increase owing to SNC. 63.10pc said yes, 28.95pc said no, and 7.91pc remained unsure.

The fifth agenda tackled with the structural issues and whether they could be solved with SNC 43.43pc voters said yes, 46.60pc said no and 9.95pc said they were not sure.The VC appreciated hard work of students Eza Qamar, Hamza Jaleel, Nouman Ehsan, Areesha Ehsan and Ahtasham Chattha who worked tirelessly to make this referendum possible.