December 11, 2005	Sunday	Ziqa’ad 8, 1426

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PESHAWAR, Dec 10: Experts have stressed the need to bring changes in the curriculum of quack-hit areas’ schools to help children face the post-disaster situation. There was a dire need for imparting emergency education and a system, which would impart skills, needed to manage these catastrophes, said Ms Lynne Heslop, regional education training adviser of the British Council, UK. She was speaking at a one-day seminar on the “Role of Education in the Post-natural Disaster Rehabilitation” organized by the Education Net in collaboration with the British Council.

Speakers, mainly educationists, NGO workers and education department officials, said children should go back to schools in the five quake-hit districts of the NWFP as soon as possible. There was also a need to develop suitable curriculum; they should have the skills to rebuild their lives and achieve economic stability in their future, they added.

The disaster could push people further into poverty. Postponing education until the emergency was over could mean that many children would never attend the school again, Miss Lynne referred to a report of Save the Children.

She said more funds were needed for emergency and quality education. There was a need for relevant training and curriculum should support it. “Some topics should come into curriculum to help support recovery from emergency.”

Methodology of teaching should change. In this regard international collaboration was required. After the tsunami, the UK educational institutions of helped the Sri Lanka through establishing linkages between their institutions, partnership in higher education and vocational education, Ms Heslop.

The same should be done here in the post-disaster rehabilitation process, the educationists said.

Special Secretary Education Shafiullah said that only 304 tent schools could be set up in the five quake-hit areas in the NWFP, although the number of tents required initially was 12,497 tents.

“We still need donor’s help to set up schools and get teachers and students back to schools’,” said Mr Shafiullah.

Imtiaz Gilani, vice-chancellor of the University of Engineering and Technology, Peshawar, said the disaster could be used as opportunity to improve the quality of education and other things.

Ms Salma Masood, member of the Education Net, an NGO, also spoke on the occasion.

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