Unequal education

The articles and contributions of Dr Atta-ur-Rahman are always inspiring and commendable. Despite our rulers’ tall claims, the state of education has seldom been addressed seriously since independence. We forgot that the first ever conference after independence was the Education Conference that highlighted the importance of building a new nation. We never addressed its recommendations and the visionary message of Quaid-e-Azam therein.

Schools are feeders for higher education and if the quality of school education is dismal, how can we expect quality in higher education? Schemes like Danish schools and laptop distribution are fruitless because these were launched outside the system without addressing the basic problems of school education such as the provision of basic facilities and training of teachers. The growth of private elite educational institutions is further widening the gap between children passing out from schools in the public sector and those from the elite class.

Dr Tariq Mahmood

Islamabad