Education Reform and Conflict Prevention– Perspectives from Pakistan

USIP- Washington D.C June 8, 2007 By Baela Raza Jamil ITA – Centre for Education & Consciousness, Pakistan

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A country is under siege from within ..evidence mounting – Ethnicity, Religion, Gender, Diverse Education Systems etc. Inter-provincial conflict, low understanding about the ‘other’ Violence against women, children & society..eating up the social fabric

Sixty years after independence, Pakistan with 92% of its population classified as Muslims, is obsessed with religion, identity and exclusion.

Whilst peace processes across borders (Afghanistan and India) are relatively positive, the peace within lies in shambles.

Is education reform confronting these issues at all?

Country Context

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Population : 160 million Population Growth Rate : 1.9% Poverty Rate : 24% Vulnerability %: 26% Male Female Ratio: 100:92 ( Case of Missing Women!) _ Literacy Rate: 53%Gender Disparity in Literacy: 25 %Gross Education Rate: Primary: 86%Net Enrolment Rate : Primary: 52%Net Enrolment : Rural Girls 42%Private Sector Provision 35-37%(245,682.Total # of Institutioons)

Enroll: 33.38 Million Teaching Staff :1.56 Million

Education with positive social and economic externalities, is a strong predictor for maternal and infant mortality, gender equality, child labor its worst forms & absolute poverty .

Key Statistics

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The Missing Women Data

Complex factors: patriarchal/feudal traditions and customs, son preference, gender discrimination: low access to basic needs & parallel draconian legal systems

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Beyond Madaris…. The Private Sector –the case of Hybrid Religious Private Chain Schools .. An fast growing reality

12,979 Deeni Madaris : Enrolments 1.54 million National Education Census 2005

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Presentation Part I : Education Reforms in Pakistan :

A White Paper –Revised March 2007

Part II : The Citizens’ Response

Part III : The Way Forward

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Despite lengthy consultative nation wide processes encompassing the compilation of the White Paper, the precursor to the forthcoming education policy, the document officially termed ” as an intellectual exercise”. (MoE Feb. 22, 2007 )

The New Education Policy is to be shortly finalized and is on yet another national consultative journey (May –June 2007) to accommodate child labor as part of EFA and MDGs

The National Education Policy Review (NEPR) Process: 23 Green Papers, 10 Thematic Round Tables One National Conference 2 Versions of White Paper

www.moe.gov.pk

The White Paper (revised)

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Education policies and reform documents since 1979 have focused more on access through multiple providers and somewhat on quality, deeply underpinned by ideology. They have enabled many more partners to enter the arena .….

The framing of ideological positions has an exclusionary stance, neither conflict nor its prevention have never been acknowledged or given space in the discourse or policy documents.

Education Policies, a traditional tool in the hands of Pakistan’s praetorian managers to seek legitimacy, accommodate and appease

potential support groupsEducation - A severely under- funded enterprise and even lower

capacity for utilization

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The White Paper Layout Governance & Management Quality Equity Access Relevance Religious Education Linkages to Principal Social Issues ..incl. Sectarianism

& Democracy Education in Emergencies

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Policy RecommendationsSection 10 White Paper…… Back to Religion

Islamic education in public schools must be seriously overhauled, particularly in the manner that it is phased through the first 10 years of a child’s education..

Between Classes II to V, it should be the purpose of education to inculcate in the Muslim child the Muslim value system..

From Class--VII,, more formal instructions in Islamic practices,, which are common to all Muslim beliefs,, should form the basis of the content in the courses of Islamic Studies.. For Non--Muslims courses in values//morals drawn from recognized sources should substitute Islamic Studies

Learning Quranic verses by rote in themselves do not improve the moral or social attitude of the individuals.. It must be recognized that the duty of society and State is to help the individual in acquiring the attitudes and views of life that the injunctions of Islam require from all Muslims.

Courses should not emphasize on procedural details if they are known to be divisive in character.. This function to be an obligation of the family.

Courses should specifically inculcate in the pupils respect and tolerance for all faiths.

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Curricula and textbooks must not foster, or lead to, sectarianism. . All divisive material be weeded out from tithe national curriculum and textbooks.

2. The State must not be partial to one politico--religious interpretation or the other. Ethics derived from the Quran and Sunnah should essentially form the basis of religious education and procedures must not overtake substance as the focus of sensitization.

3. Democracy, as a way of life, be a conscious part of the education as provided particularly in schools.. It will enable citizens to have an inclusionary outlook to life, with tolerance for difference of opinion. Thus we will be able to produce citizens with democratic ideas and beliefs, ensuring its practice.

Policy RecommendationsSectarianism..linkages to principal social issues

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e.g. National Curriculum Pakistan Studies Gr. IX-XDisconnect between Policy & Curriculum Reform

“This course of Pakistan Studies — which is a multi-disciplinary subject — has been designed for the students of Grades IX and X, with a view to enable them not only to understand the factors leading to the creation of their homeland, but also to appreciate various aspects of its ideology, history, culture, geography, politics, economy and strategic position in regional and international affairs.”

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Chapter I… Pakistan StudiesIdeology revisted..

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Chapter VIII… Pakistan StudiesThe place for minorities..

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II: Responses to the White Paper ITA Public Trust – January – February 2007 Catholic Bishops Conference.. National Commission for Justice and Peace National Coalition for Education (NCE) SDPI Aga Khan AKU- Institute of Education Development (AKU-

IED) Other CSOs and alliances also joined in as did media The response strategy snowballed and the Ministry had to

revise the first White Paper

The Task Manager at MoE resigned due to difference with the Minister on whose opinion counts.. citizens’ or the state ?

Civil Society movements becoming strong from mid 60s in Pakistan

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III. Recommendations and Way Forward

“There was a person, who made a circle to keep me out, So I made a circle to include us both.”

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Way Forward Pakistan is 116th (6th from bottom) and USA 96th on the Global

Peace Index (GPI, May, 30,2007): Conflict not a phenomenon for the developing world only.

It is important to mobilize strong conceptual frameworks and practical tools on conflict prevention, from other countries and adapt to the Pakistani context.

Other than Madaris it is the mainstream/hybrid and even elite secondary & tertiary institutions where diversity is being undermined, where ‘talibanisation’ & ‘extremism’ are being propagated. Thus a more intelligent strategy is required to explore substantive alternatives.

Education is the centre-piece for reversing the trends and to work towards a democratic learning environment..engaging with diversity, peace and citizenship discourse .

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Way Forward.. In Policies & Curriculum A section needs to be added both in the upcoming policy

document and in the National Curriculum guidelines on Diversity, Democracy, Citizenship and Conflict management /resolution as across cutting theme.

It needs to run powerfully across policy sections on Governance, Management, Quality, Equity and Access.

An urgent need to design tools for a PEACE AND CONFLICT AUDIT in our national curriculum, policies, strategies, its objectives, textbooks, pedagogy and assessment systems.

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Way Forward ..Multiple Providers ..Multiple Partners

The NEC provides solid evidence on multiple providers. Diversity of provision needs to be tackled through ensuring standards and principles of operation, rather than an adversarial /preferential stance on who is the provider.

Taking a disaggregated view of school systems, hybrid versions, including madaris to see what is being taught and how it is being taught?

How can techniques of conversations/dialogues about conflict and peace, research on peace in local contexts mobilizing the little/subaltern histories instead of grand but distant narratives be undertaken for a more proactive approach?

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Creating a Breed of Social Entrepreneurs for Peace and Democracy Across Ed. Systems

A strategy needs to be in place to access not just govt. schools but also private sector schools/colleges/universities and teachers as well who make a critical difference.( Many elite, private and govt. schools breeding grounds for more committed fundamentalism/extremism.. Much more sophisticated & internalised)

ITA is working with over 7000 teachers /educators annually. It has trained pool of partner educators including those at the Plymouth State University USA (80 educators). It is vital to mobilze them as agents of change, peace and democracy.

It is critical to mobilize students/youth in this enterprise across the country

Conversation/dialogue techniques about conflict and peace, initiatives at the school/college and local levels to capture and understand local histories, culture and experiences rather than grand narratives..to enrich the national fabric. Moving away from homogenized national narratives… Ideology= Islam = Nationhood

Changing culture of schools, colleges, training institutions and departments/ ministries of education

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Way Forward…. The Language Dilemma or the Peace/Tolerance Challenge “ A new language policy of providing justice to all, by

writing new texts in Urdu and other national languages — texts which promote peace rather than war, tolerance rather than intolerance and the idea of rights rather than the views of male and class superiority.

Then perhaps we can take the risk of promoting a more just policy on the medium of instruction” . (Tariq Rahman, Opinion Piece, Dawn June 5, 2007).

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Conflict Prevention through holistic education strategies is central to the challenge of survival, evolution and well being of our society and our global community.

I strongly believe that we have the will, the tools and we can do it collaboratively..

We need to band together for a global agenda and action towards human security !

Final Comments

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Websites Ministry of Education:

www.moe.gov.pk (Curriculum) Federal Bureau of Statistics

www.statpak.gov.pk/depts/index.html( National Education Census & PSLMs or Pakistan Social Living Measurement Standards survey)

Ministry of Finance www.finance.gov.pk