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Argentina: La educación siempre espera

Noticias

Argentina/ 14 de noviembre de 2017/Por: Sergio Sinay/Fuente: http://www.perfil.com

En una entrevista televisiva efectuada esta semana el ministro del ramo, Alejandro Finocchiaro, enfatizó la necesidad de orientar la educación hacia las posibilidades no desarrolladas de la Argentina, como, por ejemplo, producir especialistas para aprovechar el vasto litoral marítimo. Un par de día antes se había evaluado a 1.200.000 alumnos en 31.300 escuelas de todo el país a través de las pruebas Aprender. Los resultados que este operativo arrojó en 2016 mostraron, entre otras cosas, que el 90% de las escuelas públicas tiene jornadas de cuatro horas (y hay que descontar los tradicionales días de paro docente), que la mitad de los estudiantes secundarios no comprende lo que lee, que siete de cada diez salen de la secundaria sin tener los fundamentos básicos de las matemáticas. En sólo un año no es posible esperar grandes cambios para 2017. Estas y otras cuestiones, como los paupérrimos resultados en Lengua, podrían explicar por qué el gremialismo docente se opone a esta evaluación. También habla de ellos, puesto que los chicos no se educan solos.

Ante el estado de la educación argentina, cabe preguntarse si un camino de salida es, como pareció desprenderse de las entusiastas respuestas del ministro, la formación de especialistas. La insistencia a veces eufórica en conceptos como “conocimiento” y “especialización” cae una y otra vez sobre la educación prometiendo una panacea. ¿Pero es eso lo esencial de la educación? Guillermo Jaim Echeverry, ex rector de la Universidad de Buenos Aires y autor de una obra imprescindible, La tragedia educativa, suele recordar al poeta griego Hesíodo que, en el siglo VII antes de Cristo, decía que educar es ayudar a una persona a ser lo que es capaz de ser.

Y esto es lo que, entre sindicalistas belicosos y funcionarios tecnócratas, nunca termina de aparecer en el centro de la discusión. Agreguémosle la indiferencia de la mayoría de la sociedad (con una masa crítica de padres a la cabeza) por la trascendencia de la educación, y los resultados de las pruebas Aprender, PISA, o las que fuere, pueden cantarse de antemano sin sorprender a nadie. De una manera sutil, la educación, en su real significado e importancia, se convierte así en un derecho humano no atendido y olvidado. Está bien movilizarse por una Justicia mejor. Pero la educación sigue esperando, al margen del marketing oficialista u opositor. Siempre espera.

Transmitir conocimientos es importante, pero antes hay que especificar qué se entiende por conocimiento. Si son habilidades tecnológicas y datos puros y duros referidos a éstas, la apuesta resulta pobre. Con el furor de innovar por innovar, que impulsa una carrera desenfrenada hacia ninguna parte, todo conocimiento es vetusto mientras se lo absorbe. Se sabe mucho, y perecedero, sobre algo y nada sobre mucho e importante. O, por el contrario, conocimiento puede ser, como propone el pedagogo español Ricardo Moreno Castillo (de quien recomiendo Panfleto antipedagógico, De la buena y la mala educación y La conjura de los ignorantes), la transmisión de una cultura filosófica, científica y literaria. Además de valores. Quienes carecen de esto (y no sean provistos por la educación) caerán más fácilmente en especializaciones limitantes o, peor, en fanatismos y sectarismos, como advierte Moreno Castillo.

Mientras por distintas razones los involucrados (padres, funcionarios, docentes) sigan mirando a la educación, cuando la miran, desde un punto de vista utilitario, un manto de incertidumbre permanecerá sobre los adultos de mañana. Más allá de sus roles y funciones (dirigentes, profesionales, trabajadores) serán responsables de la sociedad en la que vivan y de cómo se viva en ella. Generacionalmente, sus recursos serán muy pobres, aunque ellos sean especialistas monotemáticos. Porque, para bien o para mal, los resultados de la educación se expresan en el futuro. Una educación que se oriente sólo a lo útil da ciertos resultados. Una que forme personas da otros. Las sociedades eligen.

Fuente de la Noticia:

http://www.perfil.com/columnistas/la-educacion-siempre-espera.phtml

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España: Es la Educación

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España/ 14 de noviembre de 2017/Por: Alberto Aguirre de Cárcer/Fuente: http://www.laverdad.es

Asombra ver las posiciones que ocupamos en los ‘rankings’ y escuchar cómo desde la cúspide de las universidades se exhiben, como parámetros de excelencia, el haber superado la acreditación de la Aneca o la alta demanda de plazas.

Al exministro de Obras Públicas Josep Borrell le han ofrecido ir en el tercer puesto de las listas socialistas en las elecciones catalanas, pero a estas alturas no se le pasa por la cabeza volver a la política y se ha blindado contra cualquier tentación para poder así continuar con su vida profesional y personal. Solo en el plano de las hipótesis responde que si le ofrecieran hoy una cartera ministerial elegiría Educación. «España tiene hoy mucha infraestructura física y poca infraestructura personal. Nos gusta mucho inaugurar obras, porque se ven, pero los países que ganan la batalla son los que invierten en educación. Lo que necesita este país ahora es invertir en inteligencia, en capital humano», dijo Borrell el viernes en el Foro Nueva Murcia. Como en otros asuntos, acierta en el centro de la diana el expresidente del Parlamento Europeo, hoy una isla de racionalidad en este océano político donde se activan resortes emocionales y se falta a la verdad para movilizar adhesiones. Sí, es la educación. No lo duden. Y lo que es fundamental para España lo es especialmente para la Región de Murcia.

Este jueves, en su informe anual sobre Educación, la Comisión Europea nos sacaba una vez más los colores. España tiene la segunda tasa más alta de abandono escolar temprano de la UE. Nada menos que un 19%, casi nueve puntos por encima de la media de los Veintiocho. Pero si se analizan las diferencias territoriales el panorama todavía es más oscuro. Frente a una tasa de abandono del 7,9% en el País Vasco, Baleares alcanza el 26,8% y la Región de Murcia el 26,4 %. Esta semana el INE nos ha enviado otra fea fotografía emparentada con la anterior: las diferencias salariales entre regiones siguen en ascenso. En el País Vasco los sueldos medios ya son un 40% superiores a los de Extremadura o la Región de Murcia. Esa brecha de desigualdad salarial se concreta en unos 4.200 euros menos al año en los bolsillos de los murcianos. La causa directa es el diferente modelo productivo. La Región está reduciendo su tasa de desempleo gracias a la hostelería y la agricultura, pero son precisamente las actividades con el salario medio más bajo de las analizadas por el INE. Si esas dos son nuestras únicas grandes bolsas de trabajo, difícil lo tendremos para evitar que los adolescentes murcianos renuncien a completar su formación. Por el contrario, los jóvenes vascos abandonan en menor medida los estudios porque necesitan mayor cualificación para entrar en un mercado laboral más tecnificado y mejor remunerado.

Invertir más en la educación pública es imprescindible, aunque no basta si no se prioriza bien el gasto, si el modelo educativo no se adapta al entorno económico y social que muta irrefrenablemente por la globalización y la digitalización, y si no se producen cambios en el modelo productivo que prioricen áreas de actividad tecnológicas e industriales. A la vista está que el Pacto de Estado por la Educación y la apuesta por la I+D+i es ya una cuestión de pura supervivencia en este conectado y tecnológico mundo.

El Gobierno autónomo se ha fijado como objetivo convertir a la Región en un espacio de libertad económica que genere riqueza y empleo. Hace bien si elimina todas las trabas administrativas que alejan las inversiones productivas hacia otros territorios, siempre que no dañen nuestro patrimonio natural e histórico. Pero se equivocará si se limita a dejar hacer y no diseña una política industrial y educativa fijándose objetivos y tomando decisiones para emplear con eficacia los recursos públicos. Hace falta una estrategia regional claramente definida que priorice, por ejemplo, las industrias asociadas a la agricultura, desde la agroalimentaria a las empresas innovadoras en riego, semillas… El carajal que se ha creado con el cambio de modelo de las ITV y las primeras turbulencias por la prometida reforma universitaria muestran un Gobierno con ganas, aunque dubitativo, a veces torpón y con un discurso argumental tan básico que en ocasiones sonroja.

Quizá no sea el mejor momento para plantear la reforma de la ley universitaria regional, con elecciones al rectorado de la UMU a la vuelta de la esquina, pero más nos valdría que los partidos políticos y las propias universidades murcianas asuman que nuestros parámetros de excelencia, empleabilidad e internacionalización son claramente mejorables. Asombra ver las posiciones que ocupamos en los ‘rankings’ y observar cómo desde la cúspide de los centros superiores de enseñanza se exhiben, como parámetros de excelencia, el haber superado las acreditaciones de la Aneca (que solo fijan los mínimos exigibles) o la gran demanda de plazas, lo que bien puede explicarse por los precios de las tasas y la apetecible vida universitaria en una ciudad como Murcia. Que se cuenten por decenas de miles los universitarios en la Región de Murcia es un criterio tan endeble que vale para andar por casa, pero no para esgrimirlo en foros con una mínima altura académica. Si piensa el Gobierno regional que la mejor política universitaria es la que no existe anda muy equivocado. Es verdad que los efectos dañinos no se aprecian a corto plazo, pero son acumulativos y terminan por emerger. ‘Otra educación es posible’ es el lema del congreso Proyecto Aula que celebra este fin de semana ‘La Verdad’ con expertos en innovación pedagógica de dentro y fuera de la Región. Ahí se constata que no todo es negativo en nuestro sistema educativo. Al contrario, tenemos docentes excelentes y muy implicados, junto a no pocos alumnos brillantes. Hagamos de la educación un asunto central, dediquemos los recursos suficientes y fijemos objetivos ambiciosos. Los resultados terminarán por llegar.

Fuente de la Noticia:

http://www.laverdad.es/murcia/educacion-20171112230750-nt.html

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Papua New Guinea: Education System Shift Delayed Till End Of 2013

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Papua New Guinea/November 14, 2017/By: Alexander Rheeney/Source: http://www.pireport.org

Papua New Guinea’s Outcome-based Education (OBE) will remain until a review led by a Government-appointment taskforce into the controversial curriculum is complete at the end of next year.

In the interim period all schools, from elementary to secondary schools in PNG, will use English as the medium of instruction from February 2013, replacing Tok Pisin and vernacular languages in elementary schools until the review is done. Prime Minister Peter O’Neill said this yesterday at a press conference in Port Moresby, in response to the special coverage by the Post-Courier last Friday on the numerous challenges facing the education sector, including the plans by the Government to phase out the OBE.

He said when the acting Education Minister, James Marape, announced plans for the Education Department to phase out the curriculum, it was to be part of the review that the Government would undertake. «The complete review of the OBE system will take place over 12 months. When we took over government in 2001 we announced that the OBE will be gone, in line with the previous government’s decision that was done in 2010,» Mr. O’Neill said.

«So we wasted 2010, we wasted 2011, we wasted 2012. Not one single review has taken place, as the Government of the day demanded, whether it was Somare or our government, because people were complaining. I don’t need any more excuses from anybody, 12 months is good enough (for the review),» he said.

The work of the taskforce, to be chaired by the Divine Word University (DWU) president and Catholic priest Father Jan Czuba, will cost taxpayers between one to two million kina [US$476,417 to US$952,834] and have its terms of reference discussed and vetted by a special cabinet sitting in January 2013.

The Catholic Church, one of PNG’s leading providers of education, last week criticized the O’Neill Government for not consulting the churches on its plans to remove the OBE.

However, Father Jan’s chairing of the taskforce now enables the church to participate, which Mr. O’Neill highlighted at the press conference yesterday.

«We have agreed that Father Jan Czuba, the president of Divine Word University who is of course one of the leading educationist in the country, has volunteered to become the chairman of that taskforce that will review the OBE system over the next 12 months,» the PM said. According to Mr. O’Neill, Father Jan is already in contact with key educationists including National Research Institute (NRI) director Dr. Thomas Webster, former Education Department secretary Jerry Tetaga, the principal of the Enga Teachers College and Education Department officials, who would work towards addressing the issue before the start of the 2014 academic year. The PNG Teachers Association (PNGTA) recently blamed the lack of funding and resources for the demise of the OBE, but Mr. O’Neill yesterday assured the country that his Government will not let that happen when a new curriculum is in place. «I can guarantee you that we are spending close to K2 billion [US$952.8 million] on the education sector in 2013,» the PM said.

Source:

http://www.pireport.org/articles/2012/12/25/png-education-system-shift-delayed-till-end-2013

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Indian: DBT has shown mixed results for education system: World Bank official

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Indian/November 14, 2017/By: PTI/Source: http://indianexpress.com

The conditional stipend for girls going for secondary education in Bangladesh led to a movement to bring girls to schools and the enrolments rose to 53 per cent of the total strength, said Junaid Kamal Ahmad, Country Director for the World Bank in India.

The direct benefit transfer (DBT) scheme has shown mixed results for the education system, although it can have a major impact on poverty levels and nutrition, a senior official of the World Bank said Sunday. The DBT scheme can have major impact on poverty levels, access and nutrition, said Junaid Kamal Ahmad, Country Director for the World Bank in India, adding “whether it has any impact on outcomes of learning – mixed results so far.”

Ahmad advocated that the DBT scheme be made a part of the broader reform programme in schools to achieve desired goals. “DBT has to be part of a broader reform programme in the school system,” he said in his address at a conference on DBT in education organised by the Centre for Civil Society (CCS).

Citing the huge impact of conditional grant in improving enrolment of girls in secondary education in his home country Bangladesh, he stressed on the importance of decentralisation of schools. The conditional stipend for girls going for secondary education in Bangladesh led to a movement to bring girls to schools and the enrolments rose to 53 per cent of the total strength, he said.

Ahmad said the DBT scheme should be enabled across every single service through investing in capacity of states to bring together the functions of unique IDs, financial systems, financial transfers and registry. CCS president Parth Shah called for complimentary interventions like ease of opening schools, fixing accountability and measuring learning outcomes to boost DBT’s effects on education.

Source:

http://indianexpress.com/article/education/dbt-has-shown-mixed-results-for-education-system-world-bank-official-4933840/

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EEUU: Democrat Shea proposes sweeping — and costly — education plan that covers kids from womb to job interview

Noticias

EEUU/November 14, 2017/By: Erin Cox/ Source: http://www.capitalgazette.com

Democrat Jim Shea is pitching an expansive, costly plan to overhaul Maryland’s education system, starting with expanded prenatal care and stretching through on-the-job training.

The multibillion-dollar proposal emphasizes extra funding for poor areas, universal preschool, child care subsidies, after-school care and summer programs, plus tuition-free community college, higher pay for teachers and a new K-12 curriculum pegged to international standards.

“We have to have all of these building blocks,” Shea said.

The 21-page proposal released Monday morning, however, does not offer a timeline or a price tag for the plan. Shea said those details would come later, after a state commission that’s also working on education reform releases its price estimates for similar ideas.

Shea said in an interview he expected it to cost in the billions of dollars — and that he doesn’t expect to raise taxes in order to pay for it.

Shea criticized Republican Gov. Larry Hogan’s record on education, pointing out that education spending has not risen as quickly as the state’s revenue. Hogan’s spokesman has said the governor has increased education funding each year, and the governor’s record speaks for itself.

Shea promised that, if elected after winning the eight-way Democratic primary, he would make putting more cash into the education system his top priority, and he was willing to make “tough choices” to do it.

He declined to identify what he would trim from state spending in order to make education spending increase at the same rate as state revenue, but he acknowledged it was a big expense that would require significant “political will.”

“Properly funding public education is expensive,” Shea said. “In the long term, however, failing to fund education is far more expensive in lost productivity and underutilized human capital.”

In order to save some money, Shea said that non-classroom costs like transportation, energy and materials could be purchased through a statewide joint purchasing agreement. He speculated that that could save about $100 million annually — about 5 percent of the cost of such purchases.

Many of Shea’s proposals are the same ideas under discussion by the Kirwan Commission, a panel charged by the state legislature to come up with ways to overhaul education in the state. The commission plans to issue its recommendations — and the large price tag that goes with it — by this June.

Shea promised that, if elected, he would fully implement the commission’s recommendations.

A consultant for the commission has estimated Maryland needs to spend $2.9 billion more each year on education, though some commission members have said they expect the total cost of their proposals to be less than that.

“Maryland must invest boldly in education,” Shea said. “If, however, we commit fully to a bold plan to have an education system rivaling the best in the world, the benefits to our children and our state will be enormous and more than justified.”

Shea said that Maryland has taken steps before, pointing to the landmark Thorton funding formula that increased K-12 school funding from $2.6 billion annually in 2002 to $7.9 billion this year.

Maryland eventually raised taxes, in 2007 under then-Gov. Martin O’Malley, in order to pay for the promises in the Thornton program.

Shea called it “morally wrong and, ultimately, economically and socially destructive” that minority and young mothers are less likely to have access to prenatal care.

While Shea said that he believes his entire education plan should be enacted at the same time, he singled out funneling more resources to economically depressed areas as his top priority.

“Every year we delay on that, we are creating more and more problems for ourselves,” he said.

Shea’s proposal includes raising pay for teachers — but he doesn’t say by how much or how quickly those raises would be implemented. He also pitches more professional training for educators, residency programs for teachers in training, and hiring more teachers in order to reduce class sizes.

He said community colleges should offer child care and health care, and Maryland needs more vocational training to connect high school students with jobs.

ecox@baltsun.com

twitter.com/ErinatTheSun

Source:

http://www.capitalgazette.com/news/government/bs-md-democrat-pitches-womb-to-job-interview-education-plan-20171110-story.html

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South African commission urges more education spending before ratings reviews

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South African/November 14, 2017/By: Alexander Winning, Mfuneko Toyana/ Source: http://www.reuters.com

South Africa should raise state spending on higher education by around a third to at least 1 percent of gross domestic product, a report commissioned by the presidency and released on Monday found.

The recommendation by the commission appointed by President Jacob Zuma came as a senior Treasury official resigned after news reports said he had complained about presidential interference in the budget process, and as state-owned utility Eskom said it was facing serious liquidity issues.

South Africa relies on foreign investors to finance its hefty budget and current account deficits. Investors are nervous ahead of important credit rating reviews scheduled this month and with the ruling African National Congress gearing up to elect Zuma’s successor as party chief in December.

The presidency said on Monday that Zuma would make an announcement on the higher education report once ministers had processed its findings.

Zuma set up the commission early last year in response to protests by university students demanding free education.

The rand and benchmark bonds weakened after the presidency said it would publish the report on Monday, but they were little changed after its release.

Currency traders and analysts said markets were waiting to see how the presidency would react to the report, but they said its recommendations were risky from an economic standpoint.

“If we start repeating this pattern of recording higher and higher budget deficits we are undoubtedly headed for downgrades,” said senior Nedbank economist Nicky Weimar.

South African GDP was around 4.3 trillion rand ($296.6 billion) last year, so an increase in government spending on higher education of 0.25 percent of GDP would amount to around $750 million of additional expenditure.

The commission also recommended that all university students should be funded through a cost-sharing model, whereby the government would guarantee income-contingent loans issued by commercial banks. Should a student fail to reach a certain income level, the state should repay the tuition loan, it advised.

Introducing those measures would make it more difficult for Treasury to rein in a projected budget deficit of over 4 percent of GDP for the 2017/18 fiscal year.

But it would be popular among young people and ANC voters, many of whom are dissatisfied that South African society remains deeply unequal more than two decades after the end of apartheid in 1994.

South Africa next holds a national election in 2019, and the ANC has seen its electoral majority shrink in elections.

TROUBLE AT TREASURY?

South African markets have also been pressured by fears that the independence of financial institutions is under threat.

Local media outlet Fin24 cited sources on Monday as saying that Treasury Deputy Director-General Michael Sachs had resigned last week after complaining that Zuma was interfering in the budget process.

Treasury confirmed Sachs’ resignation, saying only that his departure was because he wanted to “serve the public sector in a different capacity”.

International ratings agencies downgraded South Africa’s debt earlier this year after Zuma fired respected finance minister Pravin Gordhan in an abrupt cabinet reshuffle.

S&P Global and Moody’s are expected to review the country’s ratings again on Nov. 24, and all eyes are on whether they will downgrade its local-currency rating to “junk” status after Gordhan’s replacement, Malusi Gigaba, unveiled dismal medium-term budget forecasts last month.

Downgrades to sub-investment grade could trigger forced selling of up to $12 billion of South African bonds and pile further pressure on the rand, which is already trading at a 12-month low against the dollar.

South Africa’s debt insurance costs hit a four-month high on Monday, reflecting a greater likelihood of ratings downgrades.

Editing by James Macharia and Richard Balmforth

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Source:
 http://www.reuters.com/article/us-safrica-politics/south-african-commission-urges-more-education-spending-before-ratings-reviews-idUSKBN1DD13C
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Pakistan: Is Punjab Education Foundation a better solution?

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Pakistan/November 14, 2017/Source: https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk

  • Failure of public education system

How much development and progress has been made can be seen from recent statistics about Literacy Rate in Pakistan. As it dropped by 2pc in the year 2015-16 to 58pc and that under the criteria, “a person is literate who can read and write a paragraph (3 lines) in a national/regional language with comprehension”

On the one hand our government is hiring hundreds and thousands of new teachers while on the other it is privatising thousands of public schools through PEF

 

“Education is a matter of life and death for Pakistan. The world is progressing so rapidly that without requisite advances in education, not only shall we be left behind others but may be wiped out altogether.” Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

Recently, Pakistan celebrated its 70th Independence Day. How much development and progress has been made can be seen from recent statistics about Literacy Rate in Pakistan. As it dropped by 2pc in the year 2015-16 to 58pc and that under the criteria, “a person is literate who can read and write a paragraph (3 lines) in a national/regional language with comprehension”.

Reasons behind the downfall of education system?

Let’s talk about the reasons of downfall of education in Pakistan, especially Punjab, which was once considered the hub of educational institutes and province with highest literacy rate. There is no special reason but an amalgam of corruption, overspending education budgets in salaries given to teachers, lack of motivation towards education among students and parents alike, lack of schools in rural areas, lack of counselling, and missing infrastructure in schools.

Punjab Education Foundation (PEF)

Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) was established by the Punjab Assembly’s PEF Act of 1991. At that time its purpose was to help private investors (by funding or granting loans to) build new schools so there may be more schools accessible to the public. The ultimate authority of PEF was under the government from 1991 until Act of 2004 as between this period the chief minister of Punjab was its chair, but after 2004 it started working as an autonomous body under a board of directors. Initially, its basic aim was to provide better education to the nation with the help of private schools by providing teacher training, professional development for private schools, interest-free loans for building construction and by providing special vouchers to households of the students to incentivise them for taking education seriously. But today, a significant chunk of PEF’s budget goes to it Foundation Assisted Schools (FAS) programmes through which, Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) pays for every child’s fee enrolled in a Foundation Assisted Private School.

Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) claims that its programmes are cost effective that is why these programmes are the best solution for equity and quality of education. In a wave of privatisation of already existing public schools, Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) has privatised thousands of public schools. PEF gave management of these thousands of public schools to private investors. Now, I would concede to the fact that, yes, PEF is efficient in what it is doing so far, but the real question is whether the approach being followed by PEF is the right approach for long-term greater good?

Punjab needs to spend more on education?

In the fiscal year 2016 Punjab’s Education budget was $2.99b out of which only $0.602b was allocated for development projects and the rest was to cater the current needs of the education department. During the fiscal year 2014, 87pc of the education budget was spent on salaries given to teachers. The major problem lies in the overspending of the education budget on salaries to 343,458 teachers and when after evaluations a schools’ progress is represented by numbers they just decide to outsource these schools or encourage students of these schools to go to private schools which are already compensated by Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) other programmes; eventually wasting tax payer’s money in the process. It may serve its purpose in the short term but then what is the purpose of having a public school system if eventually all that government is going to do is to outsource these public schools.

Punjab Education Foundation (PEF) started paying fees of the students to the private management of the schools. Fee varies according to the grade level of a student;

Rs550 per student up till primary classes

Rs600 per student for elementary classes

Rs900 per student for secondary arts classes

Rs1100 per student for secondary science students

Punjab Education Foundation is aiming to privatise the management of all schools up till grade five across Punjab and also plans to keep management of some of the school from grade six onwards.

It is worth noting how this system can collapse in seconds as it did with the change of government after 2008 national elections when PEF’s progress stalled for nearly a year. This concludes that the progress will show its numbers as long as you keep paying these private investors and this is not going to help raise the quality of education in public schools at all. On the other hand, if public schools get operated appropriately by introducing a better attendance system for teachers and students, they may even need lesser funds than what they are already spending paying these investors and overpaying their own teachers.

What needs to be done?

Pakistan as a whole has more than 600,000 teachers appointed as government employees, these teachers may have degrees, but most of them lack motivation and discipline for doing their job with honesty as most of them do not even bother showing up in schools and gather huge sums of money in salaries. This problem needs to be addressed on an emergency basis by introducing appropriate measures.

The government needs to stop paying private investors fees for students and needs to raise the standard of the public education system which is more useful in the longer run. This policy is going to help the government build a precedence of good management within its public schools otherwise its already failing public schools because of lack of good management are going to lose their remaining symbolic as well as figurative value.

Failure of charter schools in America

Pakistan is not the first country whose government has taken this step as in America this policy was implemented in the form Charter Schools. There are two types of Charter Schools in America; for-profit and non-profit. Our policy is almost similar to the US in its structure. According to National Charter School Study (NCSS), done by the Centre for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO), 75pc of the charter schools in America were either worse or not better performing than public schools. That is because with the Charter Schools Programme, the US government focused more on their public education system to ensure that faults remain no more.

Importance of public schools

Finland has a literacy rate of 100pc. There are no private schools in Finland. The reason for that is if there are no private schools then rich people are going to care about public schools as much as they care about private schools because now they do not have any choice but to help make those public schools better. It is not easy to comprehend that a country where private schools are non-existent can have a literacy rate of 100pc. Finland had the same old rusty education system similar to the entire world till 1970, and then they changed everything once and for all for the sake of the greater good.

Only those people are hired as teachers who fall among the top 10pc of the graduating students. Teaching profession is considered as good as doctors and engineers. Teachers in Finland get paid more than teachers in the United States of America (USA). There is no standardised testing system for students and Finish students do not take any test until they are 16 years of age. There is no ranking among schools because they work under the policy “whatever it takes” and try to keep everyone at the same level. According to Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores released in 2009 Finish Students came 2nd in science, 3rd in reading, and 6th in math among nearly half a million students worldwide. These plans may seem very hard at the first look but once implemented they are way easier. All the schools are publicly funded, and if it seems so hard then why not shut down, all these high-end schools and ask the wealthy to fund public schools. There is no corporal punishment as widely practiced in Pakistan and no competition among students or schools which leads to hundreds of students falling in the pit of anxiety, depression, and eventually committing suicide. There is a rigorous check, and balance for teachers and that is the key to quality education which needs to be implemented in public schools in Punjab and Pakistan as a whole.

Conclusion

From the above discussion it is obvious that privatisation of education never helps. It is necessary to support and raise the public education system on the top. On the one hand our government is hiring hundreds and thousands of new teachers while on the other it is privatising thousands of public schools through PEF. If the government has accepted its failure and is not ready to run the public education system at all, why hiring new people for an already failed system? And if the mission is to make the government schools stronger, why are we wasting funds on paying to the private schools for free education. These two contradictions cannot run side by side for long.

Can we stop experimentation on education and follow the common successful practices only and seriously?

The question remains.

Source:

https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2017/11/12/is-punjab-education-foundation-a-better-solution/

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