The education sector in Pakistan is notable for its overreliance on archaic methods of teaching, especially the technique of rote memorisation which has produced countless mnemonists but not many thinkers. Students are encouraged to fill in pages upon pages of information without meaningful assessments to back up their comprehension, and anyone who learns differently simply falls behind. This traditional mode of teaching is finally being challenged by the federal government, which is touting an
Child Rights in Focus
MUZAFFARABAD: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government on April 9 introduced a comprehensive child protection policy for seminaries, making the installation of CCTV cameras, complaint mechanisms, and teacher certification mandatory across the state. The policy, announced by Minister for Religious Affairs, Auqaf and Information Chaudhry Muhammad Rafique Nayyar, follows directives issued by Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore in the wake of growing concerns over child safety in religious institutions. Under the new framework,
ISLAMABAD: The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the federal cabinet has approved a summary submitted by the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations & Coordination for a Technical Supplementary Grant (TSG) amounting to Rs2.8 billion in favour of the Federal Directorate of Immunization (FDI). The committee was informed that the FDI remained a key national programme aimed at immunizing over eight million children against vaccine-preventable diseases, and that the grant would support continued pooled
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training, Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, on April 8, said quality education and positive nurturing during early years play a fundamental role in shaping children’s personalities, cognitive development and future success. Speaking at the closing ceremony of the 5th International Conference on “Early Childhood Development” held at Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU), the minister said that early childhood education and upbringing form the foundation of national development. He
MUZAFFARABAD: The alleged sexual assault and death of a young seminary student in Kotli district of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) has exposed serious gaps in oversight and child protection mechanisms in religious institutions in the region, with police acknowledging that similar incidents often go unreported or fail to reach a logical conclusion. The incident, which occurred on the afternoon of April 5 during an outing to the Poonch River, involved three teenage students
BAHAWALNAGAR: South Punjab health director general has directed the district health authority (DHA) to conduct a probe into an alleged incident reported in a social media post by the family of a toddler bitten by stray dogs, alleging they were forced to buy anti-rabies vaccine (ARV) from the market at an exorbitant price after being denied the same by the staff at the district headquarters (DHQ) hospital. According to the social media post, two-year-old
SWABI: A teenage boy was allegedly assaulted by a teacher at a seminary, prompting the police to arrest the accused here on April 8. Tordher police station SHO Ajab Durrani said the accused teacher, Mohammad Amanllah, a resident of Muzaffargarh, was presently residing in Guldher area. He said the accused called the boy, 14, to his room on the pretext of some urgent work and assaulted him. Taking immediate notice of the incident, the
THERE is one question that has been bothering me these days: what message are we sending to our children when their education is the first thing we suspend in times of crisis? We are a country with 26.2 million children out of school, according to data collected in 2021–22 by the Pakistan Institute of Education. In contrast, about 54.7m children are enrolled in schools, with 56.2pc in public institutions and 43.8pc in private schools
ISLAMABAD: The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) on April 8 approved a revised PC-I worth Rs7 billion for the Daanish School in Islamabad’s Kuri area, while the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) allowed disbursement of Rs2 billion for the project and the Prime Minister’s Youth Skill Development Programme. The CDWP met in Islamabad under the chairmanship of Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives and Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission Ahsan Iqbal. The
LAKKI MARWAT: Another minor girl was sexually assaulted in the Wanda Mirwali Surband area here on April 6. Police said the nine-year-old girl was assaulted inside the boundary wall around a drinking water tube-well. Police on Tuesday claimed to have arrested the suspect involved in the crime, adding that the girl had gone to the water tank located beside the tube-well to fetch water for drinking purposes. She said a suspect, Tanveer, came out
ISLAMABAD: A technical committee on the New National Curriculum, on April 7, in principle approved the draft of the new scheme of study aimed at reducing the burden on children and properly introducing new subjects, including social sciences and civic education at schools. “Today, the scheme of study was presented, and participants in principle approved it. In the coming days, after a little more deliberation, this scheme of study will be implemented,” said Federal
The SBP’s recent decision to allow teenagers as young as 13 to open and operate bank accounts entirely on their own is meant to create an opportunity for children to gain financial literacy early and through hands-on experience. The new child account category is a fully functional digital wallet with almost identical usability to a standard account, except that it does not allow chequebooks, which even adults rarely use in this day and age.