Education in Pakistan: All Demand and Little Supply

Masooma Habib
Mar 7, 1998
The is the text of Ms. Habib’s presentation at the Pakistan Economic Development Conference held on March 07 1998 at MIT.

I would like to speak about in at two ends of the
spectrum-- at one end higher in the private sector, and at the
other end NGO schooling for the very poor. In each case, I will try to
identify criteria that successfully meet parents' demand for ,
and then address the question of how successful initiatives can be
sustained.

Providing to its is clearly not a priority for the
of . makers do not seem to realize the immense
importance of investing in the people of the country, and not only in roads
and airports. Lack of skills and high illiteracy levels are as great a
barrier to economic development as inadequate infrastructure. This will
become increasingly evident as is forced to compete in world
markets where most developing countries already have more skilled workers.

Low investment in girls also imposes a high cost on society. When
are more educated, labor force participation rates increase, their
are better nourished and educated, and of utmost importance to
, fertility rates are lowered. The of is
estimated to grow to 250 million in twenty years and the country does not
have the resources to sustain this increase. Female illiteracy will be an
important contributor to this increase.

DEMAND FOR HIGHER IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR

The need for colleges and universities to provide quality cannot
be emphasized enough. Good institutions of higher learning are essential
for building leadership and professionalism in our country.

Unfortunately institutions no longer enjoy the reputation they
used to 20 years ago. The spacious campuses of Punjab University,
college and University, are not perceived as
institutions of high academic standards anymore. At the core of this
deterioration is the public examination system. Malpractice in the system
have made the Intermediate, Bachelors and Masters degrees unreliable
measures of student competence. Public institutions of higher learning
have also become a hotbed of student politics, and student and teacher
absenteeism is high.

The inability of degrees from universities and colleges to
serve as screening devices for selecting graduates in the job market has
led to a substantial demand by parents and employers for private higher
, where students are willing to pay high fees. We are all familiar
with the traffic jams caused by private colleges and institutions that have
mushroomed in rented houses in cities all over . However these
institutions are mostly commercial ventures, some of them playing a role in
providing marketable skills. Most serve as tuition centers to prepare
students for board exams, rarely providing quality and
opportunities for intellectual growth.

A few universities in the private sector have attempted to fill this
vacuum for quality higher , of which the best known two are the
University of Management Sciences (LUMS) and the Aga Khan Medical
University in . These universities provide successful alternatives
to poor quality in the public sector. In the case of the
University of Management Sciences, the initiative came from businessmen,
who supported and funded the setting up of a private school that they
perceived would meet the demand of Pakistani industrialists and bankers
for well qualified local MBAs.

I will highlight the experience of a relatively recent establishment in the
private sector, the School of Economics. The School
originally aimed to provide a graduate degree in Economics and Management
and eventually expand to an undergraduate program. The School was
established in 1993 and received a charter from the provincial
at the beginning of 1997. I was at the School during this
formative stage, and it gave me an opportunity to gain some insights into
the mechanics of the birth of an institution. It was clear that there is
substantial demand for quality higher in the private sector.
Parents are willing to pay over Rs. 100,000 a year for educating sons as
well as daughters which is several times higher than the cost of an
equivalent degree from a public university, but at the same time lower than
the cost of sending students to foreign universities. Parents' demand also
reflects the job market demand for . For instance, bankers and
industrialists often commented on the preference for well trained local
MBAs over those with foreign qualifications as the local graduate adjusted
better to the Pakistani business . For this reason, banks and
businesses are also willing to support private institutions because they
need well trained graduates to work in their organizations.

There are many interesting features and stages in the setting up of an
institution. My focus here is to identify three features that served as
important criteria for meeting the demand for higher .

1) obtaining a charter by the to award the institution's own
degrees

2) ensuring well qualified faculty willing to work intensively with students

3) creating an atmosphere of learning through regular assignments on
current topics, regularly inviting speakers on a variety of topics and
supplementing lectures with tutorial sessions.


1) Obtaining the Charter. The process of obtaining a federal or provincial
charter that allows a private university to award its own degrees is a
fairly rigorous one, and although the has allowed many
educational institutions to flourish, there is a long review process
before official sanction is given. Therefore a private institution's
willingness to go through this process and open itself up for review is
important for establishing credibility. One of the primary objectives of
the School was to obtain a charter from the to enable it
to award its own "recognized" degrees. The process of obtaining the
of Punjab charter took three years of active pursuit. This was a
frustrating experience, requiring a high level of persistence. Since the
School had announced its intention of pursuing the charter from the outset,
students and faculty participated enthusiastically in the process.
Obtaining a charter is therefore an important milestone in meeting quality
standards expected by parents and employers and setting an institution
apart from other commercial ventures.

2) Qualifications and dedication of Faculty. Even before the charter was
obtained, enrollments were rising. The school started with a first batch
of about 20 students. Just before the charter was obtained there were
about 100 students enrolled in the program and now there are over 200
students. This was partly in anticipation of the charter, but also because
well qualified teachers were recruited and were expected to work
intensively with the students. Teachers were also given independence to
design their own courses. Recruitment of well qualified staff is one of the
biggest challenges in maintaining high standards.

3) Creating an Atmosphere of Learning. Another criteria for success is
enabling the student to analyze the material being taught. When students
entered the Master's program, although they were bright, eager and
confident, their creative and analytical abilities had not been given an
opportunity to develop in college years where the emphasis was on
reproducing materials from textbooks for end-year examinations.

Tutorials were an important feature of each session where
material covered in lectures was reinforced through assignments based on
the lecture and discussions among students divided into smaller groups.

Inviting outside speakers regularly to discuss real world situations
relevant to the class material kept students abreast of current events and
gave them an opportunity to exchange views with professionals and
makers. Another important feature of many courses was assignments in which
students were required do independent research. Although students were not
used to independent work, or even using libraries, with faculty guidance
and persistence, students overcame their initial reluctance and handicaps
and often came up with creative projects.

Sustaining Standards in Private Higher

Behind successful ventures there are always individuals or a group of
people who are committed and persistent in achieving goals for their
institutions. However when the institution expands, individuals may lose
the momentum to maintain high standards. It may also not be possible for
one person or a small group of persons to effectively continue maintaining
the same level of interest and high standards. Once an institution is
successfully established it is important to also establish a clear
organization structure for sustaining quality to guide those who work in it.

To remain financially viable, it is important to be able to cover running
costs through fees, and avoid unnecessary costly investments in facilities
since parents and students attach a lot of value to the substance of the
material taught, the competence of the instructors, and the ability of the
faculty to work intensively with students. And investment in these inputs
is in fact essential to meeting the demand for quality .

In conclusion, how does one example aid us in thinking about the future of
higher ? Does the solution lie in handing over higher to
the private sector? s to What about the public resources tied up in the
infrastructure and staffing of the many universities? Can these
be salvaged? Although the majority of Pakistanis have access only to the
cheaper state provided , there is scarce evidence of in
state universities. In one case, in an effort to reclaim its former
reputation, College pursued autonomous status to give
its own examinations and award its own degrees, independent from the
Punjab examination board. This will be a challenging undertaking, since
drastic of existing methods, curriculum and funding will be
required. The results of any committed efforts in this direction will be
very instructive for similar experiments in other colleges and
universities.

Let me now turn to another vital area of schooling for from low
income families.

B: SCHOOLING FOR POOR IN THE NGO SECTOR

Only 60% primary age in attend school, a much lower rate
compared to neighboring countries. Moreover, the gap is large.
There are only 56 girls to every 100 boys enrolled in primary .
Although the has doubled expenditure on in the last
ten years the emphasis is still on construction of facilities and
recruitment of teachers without an effort to improve quality of .
The vast majority of who do attend school are not able to read
and comprehend material other than what they memorize from textbooks. Nor
are they able to perform simple computational skills in mathematics. So for
a lot of who do make it to school, the they receive is
extremely inadequate and an inefficient use of public resources.
Dissatisfaction with schools is reflected by the low attendance
rate --20 to 30 percent of schools are either empty or have very few
students.

The consensus of a number of studies on schooling in is that low
enrollment and low retention rates are a of poor supply in terms
of low quality of offered. Parents do not consider it worthwhile
to send their to school if they are not learning anything.
's time is considered better used in chores at home or assisting
parents in income earning activities. Since the opportunity cost of
educating poor is high, the quality of also has to be
high, in order to convince parents of the value of sending to
school.

Millions of poor families in want good schools for their .
They demonstrate this demand enthusiastically when they are assured that
the received is worthwhile. Participation rates are high in
successful projects. In the assisted Balochistan community
schools project, there is 87% female enrollment compared to the province
average of 18% . Successful schools established under the Baldia Home
Schools project, the Orangi Pilot project and the Aga Khan Rural Support
Program have also been in operation since the eighties. All these schools
operate with community support and involvement.

The inadequate supply of public schools has also encouraged the growth of
private schools in the last ten to fifteen years. Two types of private
schools exist in urban areas, those catering to the elite, or educated
middle and upper classes, and schools of a much lower quality, charging low
fees, catering to the poor. Low-income families in urban areas spend a
substantial part of their budget towards educating in private
schools because they perceive these schools to be of higher quality
compared to schools. However, only 10% of all school going
in attend private schools, and the responsibility for
educating the poor still lies heavily with the . The challenge is
two-fold--improving the quality of existing schools, and to increase the
number of schools.

Let me now narrate the experience of one NGO school to illustrate how a
community can be transformed if a committed effort is made to provide good
. About a year ago, I had the opportunity to work with an NGO
school in Sheikhupura, about 40 miles out of . This school started
functioning in 1991 and evolved as part of a rehabilitation program for
flood devastated settlements along the /Sheikhupra road. This
community did not have access to any school. A new school
building was constructed, and over a 100 registered on the first
day the school opened. By 1996, enrollment had reached 1500, and F.A. and
FSc. classes had also started since there was no college in the area. Now
efforts are underway to start a computer center for the senior classes. The
demand for schooling in the area led to the opening of another school
further along the Sheikhupura highway in 1995, where enrollments have
reached 500. Land for both schools was donated by factory owners of the
area.

Some performance criteria of the school are indicated as follows:

1) Cost-effectiveness: The annual cost of schooling is about Rs. 2000 per
child, which is half the cost per student in a

Parents are charged a voluntary tuition fee of Rs. 10 per month and Rs. 20
for those who can afford it. Despite their , 70% of parents are
able to pay at least Rs.10 per month. In fact they pride their ability to
pay for the of their . Since drop-out rates are also
much lower and achievement levels higher compared to schools,
society gains much more for the limited resources spent in an effective
NGO school compared to a typical school.

2) Learning abilities: from very poor families are assumed to come
from so-called disadvantaged backgrounds where there is lack of
intellectual stimulation due to parents illiteracy. In fact,
entering school in the kindergarten, class 1, and class 2 levels, from
ages five to seven, were observed to be capable of learning and absorbing
material very quickly. They had well developed motor skills, and good
communication and social skills. These skills are learnt at home. For
instance, small motor skills are developed because are expected to
engage in household chores from an early age and also learn to perform
tasks for themselves such as buttoning and unbuttoning, pouring water and
so on. When asked to draw birds, vegetables or flowers, they tended to draw
examples from real life-- making very detailed drawings of crows or
carrots or roses. As a result, in the initial years of school,
from poor backgrounds were seen to be very ready for learning, probably as
capable as the average kindergartner from a typical middle to upper class
school.

3) High returns to early : It is also in the first two or three
years of school that lose the opportunity for learning if
memorization is stressed and are intimidated by teachers.
Therefore the returns to the first two or three years of schooling can be
very high and crucial in building a strong educational foundation that
would give high dividends in terms of academic achievement in higher grades
and lower drop-out rates.

Extra effort at the "kachi" or pre-school level, and up to the first three
classes is also important from another perspective. Poor parents face
pressure to pull out of school to help with domestic or market
related activities. If the high standard of is established at an
early stage, parents will be willing to make greater sacrifices to keep
in school. Even in case the child is forced to drop out, the first
three or four classes may be the only he or she will obtain.
Therefore, the more intensive is at this stage, the more useful
it will be to the child.

4) Introducing English at an early stage: The school's of
introducing English from the very beginning is a feature specially
attractive to parents. "English medium" schooling is sought after by
parents of all income groups, because even illiterate parents can perceive
the opportunities the knowledge of English can open up for their .
Given that curriculum in Urdu is poorly developed, and most speak
Punjabi at home, there is no natural advantage in only Urdu in
the earlier classes. The challenge lies in training teachers to instruct
the properly.

5) Co- works well. Classes are co-educational up to the
intermediate level. Parents do not object to co-, due to their
trust in the school administrators and the principal. Girls make up 50% of
most classes.

6) Competence and training of staff. The success of the school
hinges on the dedication, competence and constant supervision of the
principal, or the headmistress, who in turn is motivated by NGO workers.
Some of the teachers were trained at considerable cost from private teacher
training centers in . These teachers then trained the other school
teachers. Recruiting, training and retaining teachers (especially after
they had received training) is a difficult challenge. The school has also
started recruiting some of its own matriculate students after they have
graduated to teach in the primary classes.

In conclusion, the success of NGO schools depends on the commitment and
motivation of a few individuals and their ability to raise funds. And
society cannot depend on this commitment alone. What this example does
reveal is the strong demand for high quality by poor parents and
their willingness to pay for this . Therefore it is important for
the to focus on the type of it provides and on
improving the substance of .

The main lesson to be learned from the diverse examples of given
here is that there is a positive and high response to good quality
, at the higher and primary level, and that a high priority
should be attached to providing of substantial quality. Although
the current situation is dismal, the high demand for
indicates that intensive investment in the right type of could
yield high returns in terms of enrollment and achievement rates within five
to ten years. The initiative for this would have to come from the
, and enhanced with the help of NGOs, and the community.