Problems are part of life, no doubt, but education has also fallen prey to problems. The present system of education is rotten to the core. It was designed to produce clerks for the East India Company and later on to supply a number of officers to run the administration. Since the creation of Pakistan, there has been a cry from the people that the prevailing system of education should be overhauled. But nothing has been done so far. Today we face many educational problems.
First, our education is not based on Islamic principle. It is too materialistic in its outlook. The result is chaos in society. The students of today are disrespectful to their parents and elders. The present indiscipline in schools and colleges can only be cured if the students are made familiar with the Quran. We should base our education on Islamic Ideology. We should pursue western science, but we should not forget that we are Muslims. Now “Islamiat” as a subject has been made compulsory in schools and colleges.
Secondly, ours is a developing country. We need more and more skilled workers. We need doctors, engineers agriculturists, technicians in all spheres of life. Our problem is to have more industrial and technical colleges. Education in humanities should remain but it should be restricted only to a few. This will solve the problem of unemployment to a great extent. Moreover, we will be able to get rid of the foreign experts and save foreign exchange.[the_ad id=”17141″]
Thirdly, the need for suitable books is being acutely felt in Pakistan. Most of the books are foreign published. some are published in Pakistan but they are not upto the mark. The learned men and scholars in the country must devote themselves to the writing of few books according to our needs. History will have to be re-written with special reference to the achievements of our national heroes. Modern Urdu literature should be given a place in the syllabi. Reading texts must have scientific knowledge in them. They should preach our national ideology.
Fourthly, the most baffling question is that of the languages. There are many languages in our country, Urdu, English Punjabi, Arabic etc. In order to come closer to each other we should learn one language should be developed to high standards so that it may become a suitable medium of expression. But a word of caution is necessary. We should not turn out English at once. The sentiment is no substitute for fact.
Lastly, our system of examination needs a drastic change. Our examinations are not a sure test of one’s ability. Good marks and divisions in the examinations depend on chance and cramming. A good student may fall ill and secure a poor third division; a poor student may cram a few questions and get a high first class. Our education should discourage this practice. It should take all possible steps to gender originality of thought and an aptitude for research work.
