ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary panel on Wednesday called for providing facilities to schools in rural areas and ensure an effective monitoring system within the Federal Directorate of Education (FDE).

The FDE is a supervisory body which oversees affairs of 431 schools and colleges of Islamabad. The directorate has been without a director general ever since the post got vacant in July last year. Since then, the education ministry has been looking after the affairs of the directorate under ad-hoc arrangements.

Recently, the education ministry, after a competitive process, moved a summary to the PM Office that carried three names. It is now expected that the FDE will finally get a regular director general.

National Assembly Standing Committee on Federal Education, Professional Training, National Heritage and Culture, which met at the PNCA with MNA Dr Azimuddin Zahid Lakhvi in the chair, took up a report of the subcommittee, which highlighted deficiencies in rural area schools.

Takes up subcommittee’s report that highlights deficiencies; wants effective monitoring system in FDE

The detailed report of the subcommittee highlighted several critical issues related to schools, particularly in the rural areas. The subcommittee prepared the report after visiting several schools in the rural areas.

In its report, the subcommittee also identified missing facilities in many rural schools, particularly those that had suffered years of neglect.

The report said many of these schools lacked basic infrastructure, including adequate sanitation facilities.

It went on to say that water facilities in these schools were unsatisfactory, which further compounded the problem.

Moreover, the School Management Committees (SMCs), which are supposed to support school governance and management are not functioning optimally, and their capacity needs to be enhanced to improve school operations.

The committee also pointed out that the infrastructure in some schools remains subpar, with outdated blackboards still in use.

To improve teaching conditions, the committee has recommended replacing these blackboards with whiteboards to facilitate a better learning environment. In light of these issues, the subcommittee outlined several key recommendations aimed at addressing these challenges.

The subcommittee also stated that first, the process for the appointment of a regular FDE director general should be initiated on an urgent basis to provide strong leadership and direction for the directorate.

The committee also emphasised the need for accelerated recruitment of teachers to address the shortage, particularly in rural areas, and urged the areas education officers to ensure that schools with a shortage of furniture, computers, and other essential resources are promptly supplied.

It said that one of the key concerns was the ongoing teacher shortage, which had been exacerbated by delays in the recruitment process.

This shortage is particularly evident in rural schools, where there is an urgent need for qualified educators. Additionally, the report highlights the absence of IT infrastructure in many schools, with the lack of IT labs and computer teachers hindering the progress of digital education.

The committee has recommended that these resources be made available in all rural schools to ensure equitable access to technology for all students.

Another significant issue raised was the ineffectiveness of monitoring systems within the FDE. It said that weak monitoring mechanisms have made it difficult to ensure effective oversight of school performance and the proper implementation of educational programmes.

The subcommittee recommended the implementation of an enhanced monitoring system to ensure more effective oversight of schools and the allocation of resources. To address the infrastructure gaps in rural schools, the committee called on the finance ministry to allocate funds for the immediate improvement of school facilities, including better sanitation, water supply, and general infrastructure and bridge the gap between rural and urban areas in terms of facilities and services in ICT educational institutions.

The committee appreciated various interventions undertaken by the ministry in both rural and urban schools.

MNA Raja Khurram Nawaz showed his concerns over the highly deplorable condition of rural area schools.

He said the education ministry was undertaking multi-billion rupees project but focused only on urban areas, adding that he was part of the subcommittee that visited the schools and found the situation highly shameful.

He said in one of the rural schools, stray dogs were also seen.

The MNA demanded the ministry pay proper attention to institutions in the rural areas.

Education Secretary Mohyuddin Ahmad Wani told the committee that the ongoing project was started before his tenure began, however, he said under this project, 80 rural schools were being face-lifted and missing facilities provided.

He said work in 10 schools have already been completed and simultaneously wer continuing in other rural area schools.

Mr Wani also shared details of the initiatives with the committee that included interventions of 50 digital technology learning hubs, teacher training, recruitment of 286 new teachers, school meal programme, provisions of sports kits and schools solarisation project.

Earlier, under the ongoing over Rs7 billion project, the ministry face-lifted schools of urban areas and provided new facilities.

Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2024