FDE reorganisation: Colleges in Islamabad placed under single authority

Directorate’s new chief says teachers on deputation to be sent back in phases

ISLAMABAD: In a bid to improve the quality of education imparted in government-run schools and colleges of the federal capital, it has been decided that the model and federal government colleges will be now run by a single wing of the education directorate.

This was disclosed by Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) Director General Professor Ali Ahmed Kharral while speaking to senior journalists in the capital. Prof Kharral’s FDE oversees some 420 government-run schools and colleges in the city.

Kharral, who had been recently appointed as a permanent chief of the FDE and marked the return of the teaching cadre at the head of the directorate, noted that they were reorganising the FDE.

Moreover, following directions from the Higher Education Commission (HEC), they have set up a quality enhancement cell in the directorate.

He said that Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood had assured him of his full backing to improve the quality of education in the capital’s education institutions.

Prof Kharral said that the government was embarking on two programmes to improve education including the Education Volunteer Programme and the Out-of-School-Children enrolment campaign and that the FDE will be playing its due role in the programme.

In this regard, he said that they will be signing a memorandum of understanding with a non-governmental organisation (NGO) ‘Mawan Foundation’ under which the foundation will be responsible for providing basic facilities in 10 schools.

The FDE’s new chief claimed that since he took over, he has looked at the key issues plaguing schools, particularly the shortage of teachers.

In this regard, they found that a number of teachers employed by different schools in the capital were deployed elsewhere. But now, they have compiled a list of all the teachers who are working in different departments on deputation and that all of these teachers will be sent back to their schools in phases.

“Our teachers want to work, we just need to give them confidence,” Prof Kharral said, adding, “We will use teachers as per the skills they have.”

Moreover, he said that they will be moving to further eradicate differences between the model and federal government schools by bringing them under a single wing. Apart from the ease in administration of the two types of educational institutions, Prof Kharral claimed that it will also help save the government around Rs2 million per month, money which can be used elsewhere.

In response to a question, he said that they will be trying to lower the fees of the model colleges when the next education session starts.

Responding to another question about the registration of the school buses provided under the Prime Minister’s Education Reforms Programme, he said that they have dispatched a summary requesting funds for registering the busses.

Asked about the conundrum that the FDE was mulling charging students transport fees, Prof Kharral conceded that while Article 25-A of the Constitution guarantees the provision of free education to children from grade 1 to grade 10 — which meant that they cannot charge any fees for transportation, but conceded that school principals were forced to charge the fees to pay for the operating costs of the buses.

He added that they were working on finding a solution whereby the collection of this fee would be brought to an end.

The FDE director general further said that he was devolving his powers and that now, no teacher will be transferred without the approval of the specific school’s principal. In this regard, the deputy directors and directors will have greater powers as well.

He added that they were also trying to streamline office work as well so that teachers do not have to visit the FDE even for small things.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 1^st, 2018.