Missing element

This refers to the letter ‘Towards literacy’ (November 27, 2023) by Deputy Director Nazneen Zehra. I appreciate the steps the writer has taken to foster a culture of reading among our children. However, I believe organizing reading conferences and festivals and encouraging parents to cultivate a reading culture at home, is not enough to build a reading culture. 

One cannot become an inquisitive and persistent reader without a genuine thirst for knowledge. True motivation and consistency stem from the combination of a genuine thirst for knowledge and external stimuli like festivals and conferences, evolving into habits over time. The motivation gained from a festival alone quickly dissipates afterward.

The responsible bodies should ignite a thirst for knowledge in students by embracing innovative approaches in educational institutions, discarding traditional teaching methods in schools and colleges, and reforming the outdated system and mindset focused on grades as the sole measure of students’ intellectual capabilities.

Shayan Ashraf

Sukkur