Aftab Mohmand
The Education Department of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has issued a stern warning to all district education officers in the province due to the absence of Pashto and other regional languages in government schools.
In a letter addressed to the district education officers, the education department expressed concern about non-compliance with directives to include Pashto and other regional languages in the curriculum.
These languages have been declared a mandatory part of the courses. As a result, the district education officers are urged to ensure immediate measures to incorporate Pashto and relevant regional languages in school curriculums up to the twelfth grade. Failure to act on these orders may lead to disciplinary actions.
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The KP Education Department previously mandated the inclusion of Pashto and other regional languages in all government schools last month, extending the same directive to private educational institutions across the province.
Abbasin Yousafzai, a KP education expert, highlighted the historical context of this language inclusion effort. In 2012, the KPK government passed a law, supported by a provincial assembly resolution, making it compulsory to teach five regional languages, including Pashto, Hindko, Saraiki, Kohistani, and Kohar (Chitrali language) from Class I to Class XII. Unfortunately, this law has not been effectively implemented to date, despite the deadline of 2018.
Yousafzai mentioned that a curriculum was developed in 2012 under his guidance, encompassing 120 different books in regional languages to be included in educational courses. However, not all of these books have been written and incorporated. The law from 2012 was intended to be enforced in both government and private educational institutions across KPK, with 40 teachers trained to instruct students in regional languages.
According to Yousafzai, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government in KPK failed to enforce this law. While he raised the matter with the former Chief Minister, Pervez Khattak, no significant progress was made. Yousafzai emphasized the importance of teaching regional languages, emphasizing that the national curriculum introduced by the federal government has harmed regional languages instead of strengthening them. Regional language education not only aids in better understanding and learning but also increases educational enrollment rates.
Furthermore, Yousafzai noted that the absence of regional language instruction leads to difficulties in professional fields, impacting overall progress in education. The recent warning from the Education Department aims to ensure the immediate implementation of regional language education across the province.