IBCC decisions escape implementation in Sindh
It seems that decisions taken in the Inter Board Chairman’s Commission (IBCC) meetings vis-a-vis improvements in education are implemented in the entirety of the country apart from Sindh, where various education Boards are miles behind those in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Recently, the IBCC, which comprises Chairmen of different Boards from across the country, decided that examinations at matriculation and intermediate level would be renamed as annuals and those students who fail to pass their annuals would be given the opportunity to retake them after a few months. This system is in line with the Cambridge O and A-levels examination method and was meant to bring matriculation and intermediate examination at par with the Cambridge examinations.
Similarly, it was also decided that an alternative quiz based examination system instead of practical examinations would be implemented. Furthermore, the IBCC proposed that students be allowed to give examinations of both science and arts subjects simultaneously - a departure from the conventional either science or arts subjects only approach.
Presently, while most of these decisions have been implemented at the Federal Board level and in several education boards of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, no education board in Sindh, apart from the private Ziauddin Board, has budged from the tried and tested policies.
Read Ziauddin University announces major changes in exams system
Secretary IBCC, Dr Ghulam Ali Mallah, while talking to the Express Tribune confirmed that decisions taken by the IBCC’s steering committee had been implemented by the Federal Boards and many boards of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but not by Sindh’s boards. “The examination boards presented their decisions regarding changes in examinations to a steering committee, which consists of various stakeholders, and representatives of Sindh’s boards were also present. However, it is a surprise that those decisions have not been implemented for Sindh’s students yet,” observed Dr Mallah.
However, Dr Muhammad Memom, former chairman of the Hyderabad Education Board, is not surprised by the non-implementation of IBCC decisions. “Education in Sindh is struggling because there is ad-hocism in boards. There is no one permanent guiding policy decisions, all policy decisions are being taken haphazardly,” critiqued Dr Memon, further adding that Sindh’s quality of education was miles behind that of other provinces.
“There is also no coordination among the boards of Sindh and the Universities and Boards department has also failed to offer any leadership or guidance. In education expert circles it is common to hear that students of Sindh are suffering due to non-implementation of IBCC’s decisions,” Dr Memon added.
In light of the former Hyderabad Board chairman’s revelations, the Express Tribune spoke to the Secretary of Sindh’s Universities and Boards department, Noor Ahmed Samoo but did not get a satisfactory reply regarding the non-implementation of IBCC decisions. “When we have board chairmen who come in on merit, we will see that IBCC decisions get implemented quickly,” predicted Samoo while talking to The Express Tribune.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 12th, 2023.