Education woes: Shortage of teachers compels students to drop out

Staffer of government-run high school says she teaches subjects she hasn’t studied herself.

TIMERGARA:

Male students in Lower Dir district are dropping out of school because of a shortage of teachers. Some are trying to find work, while others are relocating to continue their studies. But though males might have more mobility, female students are stuck with the deteriorating state of education.

Most of the students in Khal, Mayar, Jandol and Samarbagh areas have dropped out. The local elders are concerned over the issue and demand the government provide teachers.

Khal Government Girls High School Headmistress Maryam Bibi said 650 female students were enrolled in the school. Classes were held in six rooms, but because that was not enough, two classes were taught in the verandah and the lawn.



“We requested the district education officer (DEO) multiple times to provide us teachers,” Bibi said, adding that very few female teachers from other districts are willing to come and teach in Lower Dir.

Miss Shazia, who was appointed as an Arabic teacher at the school, said she taught Islamiat, Pak-Studies, Arabic, Urdu and sometimes even science due to a shortage of staff. “I didn’t study science, but I taught the students,” she said.

Shazia maintained only 11 out of 25 teaching posts are occupied and those 11 teachers are trying to cover for and play the role of 25.

DEO Mutahir Shah Khan said they have posted multiple advertisements for hiring teachers in the district and conducted interviews as well. But 87% of those who applied for the position did not qualify, he added. “How can the district education department appoint teachers who can hardly read or write?” Shah questioned.

The DEO blamed the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa education department for employing delaying tactics, despite the several proposals for teachers sent to them. “And now, no new appointments can be made because the Election Commission of Pakistan has banned government hiring,” he added.



“It’s not just my responsibility to provide teachers,” said the DEO, adding education in the district can only progress when the political system develops and matures.

Shah said the problem was not only widespread in Lower Dir, but the entire nation. “The government must take action at the grass-root level if they want to improve the state of education.”

Zainab, a grade six student, said she along with 147 other students, is attending classes in the verandah. Expressing concerns over the school, she said: “How can we pass our exams when we don’t even have teachers.”

Sabaoon, a student of grade 10, said more than 150 students attend classes in the school’s lawn. “The board exams in April are fast approaching, but none of the courses of science subjects have been completed, and most students have decided to quit after passing the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) exams,” she added.

Militancy can no longer be blamed because the government is not taking any steps to improve education, especially for females, she said.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 9^th, 2013.