Public schools fall short of enrollment target

Data shows jarring numbers across Punjab

RAWALPINDI:

Government schools in Rawalpindi failed miserably in meeting their enrollment targets for the first phase of the academic year, missing the mark by 28,605 students, while similar numbers were witnessed across the 36 districts of the province.

Meanwhile, private schools reported around 1.5 million admissions from February 1 to May 31 this year in stark contrast to public schools in Punjab.

According to data issued by the provincial education ministry, a total of 11,646,616 were studying in over 53,000 government primary, middle, high and higher secondary girls and boys schools across the province.

In this first phase of new admissions from February 15 to May 31, the schools were given a target to increase the student body by 535,454 children. Each district was given specific targets. However, only 37,913 students were added to the rolls at that time, leaving public schools short of its target of 12,182,070 students by 497,541 or nearly half a million children.

The current number of students in Punjab, according to government data, stands at 11,684,529.

Punjab’s five major districts of Rawalpindi, Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad and Gujranwala also failed to achieve the new admission target.

The four districts of Rawalpindi division – Rawalpindi, Attock, Chakwal and Jhelum – returned equally abysmal numbers.

As per the data, 394,530 students were enrolled in the Rawalpindi district across the baseline as per the census. The target was to increase numbers by 15,284.

However, the new data showed the number of students were 381,209, a decrease of 13,321 from the baseline number with the district missing its target by 28,605 admissions. In Attock, enrollment fell short by 15,833, in Jhelum by 12,028 and in Chakwal by 16,098 students.

In Lahore, the students at public schools totalled 636,957. The target was to increase by 38,254. However, the total increased by 5,184 students.

In the Faisalabad district, 842,748 children were enrolled with a target to add 29,883 students. However, the number of people studying at public schools increased by a mere 6,135. In Multan, the number increased by 7,819 against a target of 29,382 students with the total number now at 354,375.

In Gujranwala, 5,436 new students were added to the roll against a target of 14,704 new students.

Rawalpindi District Education Authority head Yasin Baloch said that his department intends to cover the shortfall during the second phase of admissions in government schools which will start from August 15 and continue till October 31.

“But if the election process starts during this period, we might face challenges,” he added.

Muhammad Shafiq Bhalwalia, an office holder of a teachers’ collective, blamed the ‘illegal tasks and responsibilities’ assigned to government school teachers, resulting in their absence of classes, for the poor enrollment and high dropout rate in public schools.

“They are assigned duties during elections, dengue drives, polio campaigns, census, house enumeration, purchase of wheat sacks, counting of sugar bags and flour distribution events,” said Bhalwalia. “Why would parents send their children to schools where teachers are on leave most of the time,” he asked.

Azmat Qureshi, whose children study at a government school, said that teachers are often on strike or locked in negotiations with the government over ‘regularisation, salaries, other issues’ and spend very little time in the classroom. “Even now the teachers are announcing a strike,” he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 4^th, 2023.