Teachers boycott assessment test in Rawalpindi

Unions believe TNA Test is a 'tool to justify' layoffs post privatisation

RAWALPINDI:

Teachers across Punjab, including the Rawalpindi Division, have boycotted the Training Need Assessment (TNA) Test, which was slated for Thursday, as part of a protest against the retrenchment of educators following the privatisation of government schools.

Many test centres were locked by teachers in defiance of the mandatory test order issued by Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz.

The test, designed to assess the competence and training needs of teachers, is compulsory for educators across all levels, including primary, middle, high school.

Those who fail will face dismissal.

However, major teacher unions, including the Grand Teachers Alliance, Punjab Teachers Union, SCS Teachers Union, Educators Association, and Primary Middle Secondary Teachers Association, have strongly opposed the test, vowing that no teacher will participate.

Union leaders Abdul Rauf Kiyani, Basharat Iqbal Raja, Muhammad Shafiq Bhalwalia, Malik Amjad, and Akhian Gul criticized the government's move, alleging it is a pretext to terminate 40,000 teachers across the province. They argue that teachers, many of whom have served between 10 to 26 years, possess advanced qualifications, making the test unnecessary and insulting.

"If these tests are necessary for teachers, then they should also be applied to bureaucrats, judges, police officers, and even politicians," the leaders said in a joint statement.

Protesting teachers have already faced a crackdown, with 259 officers dismissed and 1,200 others receiving notices. Unions believe the TNA test is merely a tool to justify further dismissals.

The unions warned that if the test is not cancelled, they will lock down all TNA test centres and launch a long march against the chief minister in Lahore in early November.

Critics say introducing an assessment mechanism is a praiseworthy step to ensure quality education in government schools. But they were doubtful about the timing of the test as according to them, the government is hell-bent on privatising public education in the province citing financial constraints.

They further claimed that under the garb of a teachers' rationalisation drive, the government was benefiting blue-eyed non-governmental organisations and private entities by offering valuable properties worth billions of rupees owned by education institutions in the province.

Educators' unions also believe the privatisation campaign will drive up the drop-out rate in the already shabby educational landscape.