QUETTA: Minister of State for Education and Professional Training Mohammad Baligh-ur-Rehman has said that a standardised national curriculum of Islamic studies, Pakistan studies and other important subjects will be introduced in all educational institutions in the country.

Addressing a press conference at the conclusion of a two-day Inter-Provincial Education Ministers Conference (IPEMC) here on Tuesday, he said the curriculum would be prepared in consultation with the four provinces and Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

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“Under the auspices of the IPEMC, we are going to introduce consensus Islamic and Pakistan studies in educational institutions in consultation with and approval of all stakeholders, including scholars of all religious schools of thought and education experts,” he said.

Mr Rehman, who was accompanied by Balochistan chief minister’s adviser on education Sardar Raza Mohammad Bareech, provincial education ministers and senior officers, said that a topic on protection of minorities’ rights would be included in Islamic studies because “our religion Islam orders us to protect the rights of minorities”. He said some private schools were involved in purchasing different curricula from the market at cheap rates which led to controversies.

The federal government, he said, was helping the provinces to prepare a standardised national curriculum to meet the requirements of modern era.

A consensus would be evolved also on “national heroes” and the topic would be included in the curriculum, he said, adding that in the past curricula had been introduced without nationwide agreement which created problems and drew objections.

“Now under the National Education Policy, the curriculum will be introduced from class 1 to 12 in consultation with all the federating units,” he said, adding that various subjects would be reviewed and redesigned to meet the requirements of the modern era.

Published in Dawn, April 29th, 2015

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