Reforming education in Sindh

It has been more than two weeks since the Sindh government decided to stop the disbursement of salaries for more than 2,000 teachers who failed to perform their duties in schools across Sindh. But nothing substantial has taken place thereafter to solve the menacing problem of “ghost” teachers in the province. A set of petitions filed to ensure proper implementation of the Sindh Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2013 has prompted the Sindh High Court to direct the education department to weed out the teachers who shirk their work and bring such cases to their logical conclusion. During the hearing of the petitions, it emerged that 1,645 teachers had recently been identified as delinquent/absconders and 1,481 have been issued notices to show cause of their absence from duty. Also, 45 of these ghost employees, who were shown as teachers and drawing salaries, were actually otherwise gainfully employed as journalists.

While the education secretary assured the court of action by December 31, this would merely be a remedial action, and perhaps a temporary measure. There is a general culture of taking such inefficacious actions to curb wicked problems that have long been persisting in Sindh, in particular. These solutions can have no long-term benefits unless existing systems and prevailing cultures are replaced with ones that ensure accountability and transparency. What the deteriorating education system of Sindh desperately needs is reformational measures. This means development at the grassroots level. For now, a regulation committee must be constituted for the purpose of monitoring and regulating employees as well as students. Such a committee must seek monthly reports from all schools in the province and be directed to conduct surprise inspections to monitor the situation first-hand. Those that continue to fail at their duties must be suspended from service and penalised accordingly.

While the committee can temporarily help with this, the education department should start reforming systems from the ground-up. Budgets must be used in accordance with ascertained areas of focus and emphasis should be made on infrastructural development from the perspective of long-term maintenance. Officials have claimed to have a plan in mind but as of yet nothing has been seen even on paper — let alone in terms of action. If such lack of commitment persists, heads must roll.