Necessary reform

Scrapping rigid subject groupings at the matric and intermediate levels is a decisive step towards aligning Pakistan's education system with the flexibility of the Cambridge model. The Inter-Board Coordination Commission's proposal to replace entrenched streams — pre-medical, pre-engineering, humanities — with a subject-based pathway clearly indicates a growing recognition that academic ability cannot be neatly boxed at the age of 15 or 17.

Students who, at a young age, choose non-science subjects and are issued equivalence under the humanities group have had their academic trajectories shaped by technical classifications. The appeal of the Cambridge system lies in its emphasis on subject choice over inherited labels. It allows students to assemble combinations aligned with their interests while universities determine eligibility through clearly defined subject requirements. But imitation without infrastructure is a recipe for disorder. The Cambridge model operates within an ecosystem of robust counselling, trained teachers, credible assessments and transparent university admissions criteria. Pakistan's system offers none of these uniformly.

Eliminating groups without first establishing nationally agreed subject thresholds for professional disciplines carries with it immense implementations risks. The question of standards can also not be sidestepped. Pakistan already grapples with uneven curricula and compromised assessment integrity. Unbundling subjects at the SSC and HSSC levels will require meticulous curriculum alignment and examination reform. Failing that, universities will inevitably erect their own filters, shifting the burden onto students. A menu of subjects without meaningful outcomes will then become useless.

Breaking free of outdated silos is necessary. But reform in Pakistan has too often confused ambition with readiness. If alignment with the Cambridge system is the goal, then the scaffolding that makes such flexibility work must come first. As an idea, the reform is sound. As policy, it demands far greater care than has so far been evident.