Time to get the curriculum right.

Millions of children who had been at home for nearly 18 months returned to school in August 2021 across Pakistan. The joy of returning to school, which had been a safe haven for many, was swiftly tempered by the unveiling of the Single National Curriculum. There has been no evidence that this is a national policy since August of last year – not that it matters; the seat of power, Punjab, is always the target. In terms of the curriculum, it rapidly became clear that the new offering was more of a puzzle. This is still the case today.

The ambiguity surrounding its implementation did not help it gain popularity. Why have some private and even public schools refused to accept the standards?

The substance of the SNC-approved books was next. To their credit, private schools contributed, but the Punjab Textbook Board had to weigh in, not as academics but as policing to ensure that the content followed the party (read: religious) line. Books for primary school children in years one to five were riddled with ludicrous content, openly ostracized minorities, and depicted regressive gender roles, while digital literacy was reduced to a list of definitions, with a digital citizen defined as someone who uses Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp. There was no emphasis on correct translations or language construction, which would have provided a foundation for continued development at the higher education level; there was no emphasis on proper translations or language building, which would have made learning easier.

Despite the fact that several respected scholars, like Dr. Rubina Saigol and Dr. Pervez Hoodbhoy, and others, contributed research, it was not until the subject reached the Social Media Courtroom that the director of the SNC began to engage.

Unfortunately, the communication was a one-w series of movies that don’t provide much more than a well prepared gloss of what the material is: on paper, it looks fine, but why the rush when the substance is so poor, and why couldn’t it be rolled out until all issues were resolved? Who stands to benefit from this?