perspective-education - Page 3

Insights From the 2023 Census Report

The 2023 Census conducted by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics released its complete report in July 2024 indicates that the total population of Pakistan is 240 million out of which the population of children under 18 is 112 Million (47% of the total population). Children Population (under 18) Population under 18 Total Male Female Transgender Pakistan 112,472,700 58,099,978 54,370,121 2,601…

The Case for Teaching Punjabi in Schools

THE chief minister of Punjab, Ms Maryam Nawaz, has said that Punjabi will be taught across schools in the province. This was announced at the Punjab Culture Day ceremony last week. It is a welcome announcement. Some 80 million people speak Punjabi in Pakistan and, worldwide, Punjabi speakers number around…

How many more children will we sacrifice?

Nazir left home in a fury to locate his 12-year-old son, Shaheer,…

Ghost Schools

KARACHI: Apropos the letter “Ghost Teachers” published on September 19, 2024, the…

Fatal Corporal Punishment

The savage beating to death of a madrassa student in a Swat village, followed by a ridiculous attempt at covering it up, is a reminder of the pathetic state of education in much of the country, as unqualified teachers sadistically punish children for common negative behaviors. In the Swat incident,…

Education Divide

THE adage ‘desperate times call for desperate measures’ seems apt for the state of Pakistan’s worsening rural-urban education divide. In a country where the education budget is lower than the minimum global standard of 4 per cent of GDP, where 23 million children remain out of school and where the…

Why Health Education Belongs in Our Classrooms

ISLAMABAD: Across Pakistan, children are growing up with questions they don’t know how to ask — and when they do ask, they’re often met with silence, nervous laughter, or a quick change of subject. Some questions are whispered among friends in school corridors. Some are typed quietly into search bars…

No Education

WE just saw the release of the Pakistan Economic Survey 2024-25 and the presentation of the budget for 2025-26. There is a lot that can be said about the economy and the budget, but in this article I want to focus on education and what the Survey and the budget…

Climate change: Students’ Woes

This will have a profound impact on long-term outcomes It is not just flooding or other disasters that are taking a toll on our schoolchildren. Increasing extreme weather events are making school a dangerous place to be for several weeks out of the year. The searing classrooms of Lahore and…

All Work And No Play

IDIOMS and proverbs are said to be a reflection of society, and they provide valuable insight into the shared wisdom and ways of thinking in a particular culture. Let’s take a look at two sayings from two different cultures on the topic of play and sports to try and understand…

It Is Time To Raise Better Sons

In Pakistan, we have witnessed several episodes of violence, harassment, repression and even murder of several women across the various layers of our economic strata. From the affluent Noor Mukaddam to the totally unknown little Zainab, we have seen countless girls and women of all age groups suffer at the…

The Age Of Consent And The Borders Of Belief

ICT Child Marriage Restraint Act, 2025 marks a pivotal step toward a safer, progressive Pakistan KARACHI. Child rights organisations and advocates, along with concerned citizens, have warmly welcomed the passage of recent legislation on child marriages, describing it as a landmark step toward protecting the rights and well-being of children.…

Criminalising Child Marriage

CHILD marriage persists in Pakistan for many reasons, and ending the practice requires measures that are sensitive to the problem’s complexity. Debates on child marriage tend to reduce this complexity to two opposing legal positions. Proponents of gender equality and child welfare support higher minimum age limits for child marriage…

Education And Emergencies

TENSIONS between Pakistan and India have once again led to incursions and attacks. And there are real fears of escalation to a full-scale war between the two countries that have nuclear weapons. India attacked several places early on 7th May. Given the situation, the Islamabad and Punjab governments announced the closure of…