Tackling segregation

The best part of my trip to Pakistan, no matter when it happens, is learning from the youth. I am fortunate that I am afforded that opportunity, as I meet young boys and girls and get to see the world and the society from their eyes. Some of the people I meet are family, others are children of friends, and some are students at universities in Pakistan that I have been engaging with for several years now. I find these perspectives honest, rich and unblemished by formalities.

My conversations this year in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi were darker than in past years. The disillusionment with the “system” was unsurprising. This sentiment is something I have noted for several years, but it has only gotten severer. But the sense of disillusionment came not just with the democratic process, but with actual experiences that the students have had. For example, there was frustration with how the high school system was now completely out of sync with local colleges and universities. Universities had their own calendars that often meant that the students would lose a whole year before they could enroll. The high school exam calendar was in disarray. The challenges with the dysfunction of the system (e.g. the MDCAT fiasco) were not abstract but were rooted in lived experience. There was deep frustration among the youth that no one seemed to care about their education.

Among the students I interacted with, some expressed a desire to move abroad, but that was not the majority. Many wanted to stay in the country, either due to family ties or due to other reasons, but at the same time felt that the country was not on the right path.

While I was impressed, overall, by the candid conversation and an honest assessment of the situation by the youth, I was nevertheless troubled by a society that seemed increasingly segregated along class lines. None of the students that I spoke to had ever studied in high school with students who belonged to a different socio-economic background. Things did change at the university level, but class segregation remained strong there as well. My own experience, decades ago, was quite different. My classroom in a public school in Islamabad, while far from perfect, was much more diverse. This was no longer the case.

Perhaps the most troubling part was about a schooling system that failed to create a sense of civic responsibility. Students who I spoke to were interested in giving back to society (at least in principle), but remained unsure about the avenues for civic engagement. The curriculum, and the schooling experience, was completely devoid of what ethical citizenship means, and how one should contribute to society. Any discussion about “giving back” would often circle around charity, but not serious civic engagement. Some of the students I spoke to were honest — they did internships with a social mission only to pad their resumes, not because this was something that was an ethical responsibility. Others were interested, but unsure on where to start, or who to ask. Every student I spoke to said that the issue of civic engagement or social responsibility had never come up in any of their classes, ever.

I recognise that my experience and conversation are only a snapshot and does not represent a statistically significant sample size. I also acknowledge my own privilege, and the privilege of the students I spoke to. There are, of course, many biases in my sample. Yet, I cannot help but be concerned about the missed opportunity. The students I spoke to were thoughtful, considerate and cared for their country. Yet, they were never given the opportunity, incentive or mentorship to channel their intellectual resources for social welfare and to break the increasingly class based structures of society.

A criticism of my analysis would be: what did my generation do for society when we were in high school and university? Fair enough! But that criticism implies that we should not expect the next generation to be better. Equipped with more knowledge and global awareness, we can, and should, do better.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 6^th, 2024.

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