Against govt wishes: Staying open on Friday costs schools their registration

Haque Academy, Nasra School among 46 schools punished for defying summer holidays

KARACHI: A total of 46 schools that stayed open on Friday against the government announcement of summer holidays a day earlier are facing a suspension in registration.

Letters have been dispatched to these schools by the Sindh education and literacy department's private schools’ directorate.

On Thursday, the education secretary had announced that the annual summer vacations in the province will start earlier from May 20 due to the severe heat forecast for this week. After inspection teams found that some schools stayed open on Friday, the directorate suspended their registration. "We didn't cancel their [schools'] registration but just suspended it to make them realise their mistake," said directorate's Mansoob Hussain Siddiqui.

They have given the schools two days to explain why they failed to follow orders. Once the replies are in on Monday, the directorate will forward the reports to education secretary Fazlullah Pechuho who will review the responses and, if he finds them reasonable, the suspension will be reversed.

The initial summer vacation dates were supposed to be from June 1 to July 31 but the schools were closed early due to the severe heat wave in the province.

The decision, taken by Pechuho after the approval of education minister Nisar Khuhro, was announced on May 19.

However, the Private Schools Management Association (PSMA) had objected to the decision and announced that all schools that come under their association will remain open till May 24. They reasoned that the schools need to give summer vacation homework to students.

According to PSMA chairperson Sharafuz Zaman, 90% of the 17,000 private schools in Karachi were open on Friday. "Why was action taken against only 46 institutes?" he asked. "The action has been taken against schools on the basis of ego, favouritism and partiality," he claimed.

Zaman has asked all those suspended schools that are part of his association to forward the letters to him. His adviser will send replies to the directorate on Monday, he said. "If they [directorate] do not take back their decision and undo the suspension orders then the PSMA will go on a two-day strike in August when the schools reopen," he warned.

Most of the private schools on the list are small establishments, mostly located in Korangi district. However, Haque Academy in DHA Phase VIII, Happy Home School O' Level campus and Nasra school have also been punished.

Happy Home School's O-Level campus head Farah Imam told The Express Tribune that the Hussainabad campus, which is mentioned on the list of suspended schools, is not functional. It was only a temporary building used by the school four years ago, she said. "We only have Gulshan-e-Iqbal and Shaheed-e-Millat branches of Happy Home School," she explained, adding that these branches are following the new holiday schedule.

However, a teacher from Nasra School was unaware of the suspension. The school was open on Friday just to hand over the summer vacation homework to the students, she said. "Our schools are open only for the Board of Secondary Education Karachi and Aga Khan Board practical examinations," she added.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 22^nd, 2016.