Adil Najam
This intriguing picture from Islamabad advertises a “Child Friendly School”?
Leaves one wondering about exactly what a “child friendly school” is? Maybe our readers can tell us what that would mean in Pakistan.
By implication, it suggests that other schools are not “child friendly.” That may well be so. After all, we have written before about schools that had 25 teachers and only 52 students!
In fairness, this seems to be the name of the school itself. In which case this may be a case of Pinglish. If that is so, one would have to wonder whether the school is “education friendly,” irrespective of whether it is “child friendly” or not.
It is not one of those “Bachon ki pauhanch say door rakhain”, hence Child Friendly :D
On a serious note it is tragic that on one hand people are paying 5k-10k fee for a 4 year old kid. And there are also people right here whose monthly income is note more than 5k. Private schools have become a business for the schools, status symbol for the rich and another reason of sadness for the poor. As for the education, Inalillah !
Just like creative financing scams
Prof. Najam, I had the pleasure of listening to your keynote speech at the DIL event in Houston this weekend. It was one of the most inspirational and educative talk I have ever heard. You made the importance of education and education for girls come alive in so many ways. Thank you for the wonderful work you are doing.
I am also thankful that because of that I have been able to discover this website and what you are doing here.
As others here have already pointed out, running a school in Pakistan is just a racket, one that has a relatively high rate of return and virtually no startup cost.
The total failure of education in Pakistan is one of the greatest tragedies of the country, and without doubt one of the principal reasons Pakistan as a state has virtually ceased functioning.
Hard to see how anything is going to change, though.
To have a good public education system, you need public money…and at the root of Pakistan
I think, the least of Pakistan’s Urban population is encouraged, encouraging and understanding what the power of literacy for an under-developed nation can harness. While most of all Pakistan dwells in a complicated nest of corruption, political gains/benefits, extremism and everything demeanor!