The formulation and introduction of a single national curriculum (SNC) —a product of the Ministry of Education and Professional Training, under the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government — has resulted in controversy and seen much debate across mainstream media, civil society and some social media platforms. The idea of imposing a uniform curriculum on all educational institutions was to ensure that public schools, private schools and seminaries/ madrassahs have the same/ similar learning outcomes. This required a standardisation of the pedagogical practices and identical syllabi as well as modes of assessment.

The curriculum being followed at public schools previously was drafted in the year 2006. It was declared significantly outdated and in need of reform. The government installed in 2018 following the PTI victory in the general elections undertook to devise a new national curriculum and implement it across the board to provide the same education to all school-going children. What sets it apart from the previous curriculum, the government says, is that it aims to promote equality and inclusivity.

Perhaps the most important change that the SNC aims to implement involves the language of instruction. According to Dr Mariam Chughtai, who was consulted by the government during the drafting process, the SNC allows schools to choose their language of instruction. It can be English, Urdu or any of the local languages.

This sounds exciting. The policymakers apparently ignored the fact that the textbooks needed to practice this choice may not be as readily available in a school’s language of choice. Additionally, the textbooks written in local languages may not match the standards of those available in English and Urdu that have been developed, improved upon and taught in schools for decades. The requirement that every textbook used by a school be first approved by the respective provincial education board raises another problem. It will be difficult, if not impossible, for the Ministry of Education and Professional Training to ensure that the provincial textbook boards produce and/or approve for teaching books of identical standards to cater to this policy of inclusivity.

Another change in the curriculum aims to address another concern about inclusivity. The students belonging to religious minorities are to be taught a new subject: religious education. Previously, non-Muslim students were taught ethics in place of Islamiyat. While Muslim students were being taught extensively about Islam and its teachings, it was lamented non-Muslim students were deprived of a similarly thorough education in their own religions. The SNC aims to eradicate this deprivation of religious knowledge among non-Muslim students. It remains unclear however whether this subject will have a textbook containing information on all the religions practiced amongst the minority groups residing in Pakistan, or separate textbooks providing the teachings of each religion. Similarly, it remains to be seen how schools, especially public schools that often suffer from a lack of resources, will be able to allocate capital, appoint teachers, and provide separate classroom space for non-Muslim students to effectively learn about their religion(s).

The SNC makes allowance for schools to choose their language of instruction. It can be English, Urdu or any of the local languages spoken locally.

On paper, the inclusion of a subject that provide religious education to minority Hindus, Christians, Parsis, et cetera, looks progressive, but the truth is that the implementation of this provision will be quite difficult. Some schools may not feel the need to hire separate teachers belonging to the religions that would be taught for merely a handful of students. Also, the educational material may be found biased or inaccurate if not produced and verified effectively, and learning outcomes may be severely affected if a biased or untrained teacher is put in charge. In addition, the possibility of non-implementation is quite high. In the end, the possibility of non-Muslim students being forced to sit through Islamiyat lessons does not seem far-fetched.

Some of the SNC-approved textbooks that have emerged and made rounds on social media have been criticised for their emphasis on Islam-centric anecdotes, statements, and examples in the textbooks for subjects other than Islamiyat. In a similar vein, illustrations in certain SNC-approved textbooks have garnered criticism for presenting women in the stereotypical roles of wives, mothers and homemakers. Such subject matter is bound to confuse and alienate non-Muslim students, as well as being seen as a violation of the international educational standards that the SNC wishes to uphold. The SNC policies provide that only books having its seal of approval can be taught in schools. This may restrict the freedom of schools to choose teaching material that may be more inclusive, unbiased, politically correct and aligned with international educational standards. It may even strip them of the right to do this altogether if the SNC decides to impose its own textbooks.

Two positive and unobjectionable changes that the SNC wishes to bring about with its policies are the promotion of critical thinking skills, analysis, and creativity amongst students and the integration of information and communication technology (ICT) into pedagogy. Not only will these changes help improve our learning outcomes and elevate our educational standards, but they will also aid us in tackling the problem of rote learning, which is known to hinder effective learning.

The SNC was meant to end an education apartheid in Pakistan, under which students from private schools, public schools and seminaries/ madrassahs were seen to be on an uneven playing filed by virtue of the differences in education they were receiving. In putting an end to the differences, the government apparently hopes to create equal opportunities for learning and success for all students, irrespective of socio-economic class and schooling. The government’s approach to ending the inequality in educational standards and learning, however, appears to be short-sighted and oblivious to the structural problems that have created a divide between the public and private education sectors. Issues like lack of funds, a dearth of infrastructure and facilities, and the inadequate training of teachers in public schools will remain unaddressed even if all the provinces unanimously agree to adopt the SNC. In this way they will continue to perpetuate inequalities between the average public school, private school and madrassah student.

The writer works as a publications editor at Educative. She can be reached on Instagram at @sanateewrites