KARACHI: “B-L-U-E is blue.” Razia, a first-grade student at Mazharul Uloom Government Girls School, spells out the word as her teacher, Shaista, shows the class a blue pencil.
Mazharul Uloom is something of an exception among Pakistan’s government schools, which often suffer from a lack of space and facilities. Karachi-based researcher Khizar Qazi tells Arab News that, according to an education department report from 2015-2016, around 248 primary schools in the megacity operate from a single room.
“More than 50 percent of schools have no drinking water,” Qazi says. “And more than 80 percent either have no washrooms, or — if they do — there is no water available in them.”
He adds that many schools do not have the requisite number of English or science teachers.
It’s understandable, then, that Razia’s school, which — despite being in the low-income town of Lyari — has many of the facilities other schools lack, has seen a marked increase in students over the past 16 years, from 200 in 2002 to 1,300 in 2018.
Not far from the school, 13-year-old Muhammad Yasin is fixing a wheel at a motorcycle repair shop. “My father lost his job and we had nothing to eat. So I left the school in grade four to earn a livelihood for my family,” he tells Arab News. Yasin earns Rs. 400 — less than $3 — a day. That makes it possible for his family of seven to have two meals every day.
“Not all of the estimated 80 percent dropouts are lucky enough to (find a job). Some suffer a great deal more,” Aziz-ur-Rahman, a teacher at DCTO School, tells Arab News, adding that the number of street children in Lyari has grown considerably over the last several years.
Abdul Latif Dosai, a local elder and member of Mazharul Uloom’s managing committee, recalls how shocked he was when his daughter enrolled at the school five years ago: “There were teachers here, but there were no facilities: No washrooms, no furniture... the classrooms had broken ceilings.”
Dosai approached influential people from different communities in the neighborhood to raise funds for basic facilities in the school. “When we got some infrastructure, we launched a door-to-door campaign to persuade parents, mostly from the fishing community, to send their girls to school,” he says.
The school is gradually gaining popularity. “The (student) numbers are increasing. We use modern teaching methods, making it possible for the girls to take more interest in their academic activities,” Shaista tells Arab News. “We also have evening classes for English language, computer literacy and art.”
“I enjoy studying here,” Azra Aqil, a student in grade 10 whose favorite subject is English, says. “In the evening, I teach at a tuition academy where students from other government schools also come. There is major difference.”
“There are over 300 government schools managed by city, provincial and federal governments, but very few of them impart quality education,” Rahman, who has been teaching for the last 36 years in Lyari town, notes.
In its recent report, “Shall I Feed My Daughter or Educate Her? Barriers to Girls’ Education in Pakistan,” Human Rights Watch (HRW) wrote: “Pakistan was described as among the world’s worst performing countries in education at the 2015 Oslo Summit on Education and Development. The new government, elected in July 2018, stated in its manifesto that nearly 22.5 million children were out of school. Girls are particularly affected. Thirty-two percent of primary school age girls are out of school in Pakistan, compared to 21 percent of boys.”
According to the report, 59 percent of girls are out of school by grade six compared to 49 percent of boys. Only 13 percent of girls manage to reach the ninth grade in school. Both boys and girls are missing out on education in unacceptable numbers, but girls suffer more. Fifty percent of women attend schools in Sindh, compared to 71 percent of men. However, both Dosai and Rahman say that the dropout percentage in Lyari is higher among boys than girls.
“Although there are still a huge number of girls out of school — and that is a major source of concern — there are more out-of-school boys here, since most (of them) are forced to work in this poor town,” Dosai says.
“Political instability, disproportionate influence on governance by security forces, repression of civil society and the media, violent insurgency, and escalating ethnic and religious tensions all poison Pakistan’s current social landscape. These forces distract from the government’s obligation to deliver essential services like education— and girls lose out the most,” the HRW report continued.
Although education has never been a priority for government, locals say that poverty and gang wars in Lyari have further compounded the problem, even though the town was once a hub of educational, literary and cultural activities.
Rahman recalls: “During the last census, I visited different parts of the neighborhood and found many widows. Their children were mostly out of school.” Lyari’s notorious gang war, he claims, had had a major impact on the state of education in the town.
“You may find many children out on the streets. They are annoyed with us, their parents and themselves. If we remain unsuccessful in bringing them to school, there are higher chances that they may spoil the good work of Rangers and police who fought hard to restore peace in Lyari,” Dosai says.
Meanwhile, 13-year-old Yasin tells Arab News: “If someone gives me the amount I am earning here for my family, I will quit my job and attend school.”
