School attendance to be marked by AI

Camera devices at K-P schools to curb absenteeism

PESHAWAR:

To deal with the persistent complaints of absent teachers at public schools, the installation of an artificial intelligence-based camera attendance device has been started in government schools for live attendance of students and teachers.

Managing Director Elementary Schools Education Foundation (ESEF), Zariful Mani, in a statement here on Sunday said that AI-based camera attendance devices in the foundation schools would help ensure the quality of education and improve the performance of students.

He said the School Management Information System was developed by ESEF e-governance cell to ensure transparency, quality and easy transfer of scholarship amount to the partners smoothly.

He appreciated the whole team for turning around the programme, which went wrong due to mismanagement in the past.

He said it was for the first time in the country’s history that such a system was installed in schools.

The project would discourage dropouts and ensure the timely start of classes and teachers’ attendance.

The Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) 2021 survey has revealed that there were about 22.8 million out-of-school children (OSC) in the country, including 4.7 million children aged between 5 and 16 years in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

The survey revealed that the OSC included 2.9 million girls, out of which one million belonged to merged tribal districts.

Similarly, 74.4 per cent of girls and 38.5 per cent of boys are out-of-school in the province.

Besides 77 per cent reported OSC in Kolai Palas, 70 per cent in Upper Kohistan and 69 percent in Lower Kohistan, there are reports of about 61 per cent of such children in Torghar, 55pc in Shangla, 53 per cent in Lakki Marwat and 51 per cent each in Tank and Batagram districts.

In merged areas, 66 per cent of children are out-of-school in North Waziristan, 63 per cent in Bajaur, 61 per cent in South Waziristan, 51 per cent each in Mohmand and Khyber, and 47 per cent each in Kurram and Orakazai and bringing them back to school was a big challenge for the provincial government.

Taking cognizance of the high ratio of OSC in the country, including K-P, the BISP has started Education Scholarship programs to motivate parents to enroll their children and discourage dropouts.

Under the BISP, Rs1,500 per three months were being provided to each male student and Rs2,000 to girls at the primary level, Rs2,500 for boys and Rs3,000 for girls at the secondary level, whereas Rs3,500 for boys and Rs4,000 per girl at higher secondary school level.

Since the inception of the BISP, 9.4 million children were enrolled and Rs40 billion were disbursed under BISP’s Education Scholarship program. Syed Shahab Khan, Senior Planning Officer, Education Department said that a Rs3.7 billion project had been planned.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 28^th, 2022.