No one can deny the importance of education. The process of learning and teaching knowledge is even before the arrival of man in the world. Allah Almighty not only gave knowledge to the angels and when He created Adam, He taught the names of all things. Later, when Adam and Eve were sent from Paradise to the world, Adam learned some words from his Lord. Allah told Adam that when guidance comes to you from Me, follow it. One hundred and twenty-four thousand prophets were sent to the world to teach people the right path. After the Prophets, the teaching continued by the Companions, Tabi’in and Taba Tabi’in.
There is no dispute about the obligation of education. In the Holy Quran, the importance and virtue of getting education, directly or indirectly, has been described at about five hundred places. The direct statement of the obligation of knowledge has also come in numerous hadiths. Along with religious education, the importance of worldly education is also in its place, so that not only the signs described in the Qur’an are explored, but also new doors are opened by doing more work.
We find the names of many Muslim scientists in the history, among which Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi, Ibn Sina, Omar Khayyam, al-Biruni, Ibn Khaldun and Ibn al-Haytham are worth mentioning. Education is not only important in terms of science but it covers the whole system of life, it also helps in creating awareness in the society and in the good upbringing of children. A child is initially educated at home, which forms the foundation and is then admitted to school.
Quality of education
The development of a country can be gauged by its literacy rate. Apart from the system of education prevalent in madrasas in Pakistan, the other system of education also has two standards. One is seen in government schools and the other in private schools. The standard of education in most of the government schools is so decrepit that there are neither qualified teachers nor higher education curriculum, age-old curriculum is still being taught to the children while other basic facilities are also lacking. This is the reason why those who do not have the status, they are also trying to get their children educated in private schools, even if they have to cut their stomachs for it.
On the other hand, two types of curriculum are taught in private schools, one is under the provincial education system and the other is under the Cambridge system. Books are being taught in the provincial education system which were being taught a few decades ago. In such a situation, parents prefer to educate their children under the Cambridge system so that their child can learn something. However, many parents complain that their children first spend eight hours in school and then come home late at night to do homework and have to take tutoring for it.
Primary education
This is compulsory basic education, also known as elementary education. It begins in kindergarten or nursery and goes through fifth grade. Primary education is very important for any child’s personality and consciousness. Children at this age are very curious. So their curiosity should be encouraged and guided. Primary education is given a lot of importance all over the world because it forms the base of the child and once the foundation is strong, it becomes easier to build on it.
Every step, from teaching methods, facilities and selection of teachers, is given great importance, so that children’s creativity can be nurtured. For this reason, it is necessary that primary education teachers can be trained better to enable them to recognize the natural abilities found in children and develop them further. Under the Sustainable Development Goals, Pakistan has pledged to the United Nations to provide quality primary education to every child on a compulsory basis by 2030.
Secondary education
Secondary education plays a major role in determining the direction of any student for the future. Parents and teachers should develop STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) learning skills in children. In this way, they can equip them with STEM education skills in academic and practical life. Special attention needs to be paid in this regard so that children’s creativity emerges.
Research has shown that children who have better abilities to understand the environment, do better than other children in STEM learning. It will help and the country will get new inventors, entrepreneurs, leaders and useful citizens, who will work for the betterment of the country and the people.
Higher education
In this era of globalization and competition, everyone is trying to outdo each other. Today in science and technology, a lot of work is being done on artificial intelligence, biometrics, machine learning automation, food sciences and other technical education. In order to succeed in professional life, students should study outside the traditional fields in a field that has future demand and wide employment opportunities.
Many local universities are also offering bachelors and masters programs while online courses from reputed foreign universities are also available (many courses are offered free of charge). Apart from this, many mobile apps and softwares also help in enhancing the skills of students. Therefore, there is a need to focus on vocational and technical training to improve the literacy rate.
According to data from the World Economic Forum, in the coming years, people with expertise in artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and data will have the most job opportunities. The organization estimated in 2019 that 58 million new job opportunities will be created in the global job market during the next 4-5 years while 75 million existing jobs will disappear, but digital enterprise will create 133 million new job opportunities. The sectors that will create the most new jobs include data analysts and scientists, artificial intelligence and machine learning specialists, software and application developers and analysts, and big data specialists.
final letter
Today the world is moving forward very fast, whoever does not keep up with it, is left behind. Science and technology have a big hand in this fast pace. Be it rich or poor, computers, mobiles and internet are now available in every home. In such a situation, there is a need to speed up the process of reforms in the education field so that not only the quality of education in the country improves but also the literacy rate increases. Due to talented and capable youth, the country will also be on the path of sustainable development and stability will come.
