RAWALPINDI: More than 3,000 of the approximately 5,000 private schools in Rawalpindi are not registered, a senior official of the District Education Authority said.

He explained that there is no separate authority to register and monitor private schools in the district due to which parents cannot register complaints regarding fee and the quality of education.

“Educational institutions registered with the District Education Authority are not monitored regularly due to a shortage of staff. A separate authority should be formed for registering and monitoring private schools,” he said.

In absence of a regulatory body, parents have nowhere to take their complaints

A recent survey indicates that 65pc schools in the city were not registered with the education authority which is why the provincial government cannot establish its writ in these schools.

He said that due to the absence of a separate body, the education authority only registers the institutions which submit registration applications. However, he said, it is important to register all institutions so they can be monitored by the government.

“Currently, when it receives an application from a private school, the education authority appoints [government] school principals to visit and inspect the fee structure, land, infrastructure, teachers and their salaries, other facilities such as computer and science laboratories and security measures,” he said.

The official added that private school owners are also not taking an interest in getting registered as there is no mechanism for a member of the registration committee of the education department to visit new schools and there is no system for collecting and recording data on registered and unregistered schools.

On the other hand, private school owners said they wanted to get registered with the education authority but they did not have a defined strategy. They also stressed on the need for the formation of a body along the lines of the Private Education Registration Authority in Islamabad.

Private School Owners Association President Malik Abrar told Dawn some 2,000 applications for the registration of private schools have been pending with the education authority for the last year.

“There are more than 5,000 private schools in the city for which the government formed a two-member committee comprising of principals of government schools who are to inspect and prepare a report for their registration. The committee does not have the time for the job,” he said.

He said private school owners are demanding the government should simplify the registration process and establish a separate body for looking after private education institutions.

He suggested the government include representatives of parents and private schools in the body.

Teachers of government-run schools cannot properly monitor private schools and they have not even been able to start the process in the last many years, he said, adding that the government should start the process of registering schools as the owners are ready for the initiative.

Parents have complaints about the fee structure and the quality of education but they do not have a relevant body to make the complaints to as the education authority does not have a complaints cell.

Shahmir Malik, the father of student of a private school, said the proposed authority will implement government directives and that the main problem of fee will also be resolved.

He said after the registration of schools, the education department will be able to monitor fees and the quality of education in private schools.

The non-registration of schools presents many problems for students. The Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education does not issue affiliation to unregistered schools, children are not issued school leaving certificates if they want to relocate and there is no check on the curriculum being taught.

Published in Dawn, October 24th, 2018

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