“I want to study but I don’t know what I want to be,” says Raheela, a 10-year-old, when asked about her goals for the future.

At age 10, one has the liberty to be so indecisive, but in Raheela’s case, the situation is different as a lot of things are not going her way. Raheela is one of the first girls in her family to attend school.

Living in village Baghbanan, Shamshatoo, on the outskirts of Peshawar city, she is a student of class two in Noor Model School, an institute run by the Abaseen Foundation, a UK-based charity that aims to provide education and healthcare to the children of brick kiln workers in the area. The town of Shamshatoo was once known for its Afghan refugee camps and now has a booming business of producing bricks.

Surrounded by abject poverty and unaware of the good things in life, for Raheela, going to the school everyday provides temporary relief.

Barely possessing any toys, she says, “I like looking at the pictures in my books but I won’t mind some dolls and I do want to study more.”

According to a study done by Federal Bureau Statistics on Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement (PSLM) Survey 2010-11, gross enrolment rate at the primary level (age 5-9) is 74 per cent with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) having an enrolment rate of 89 per cent. When compared with Punjab which has an enrolment rate of 98 per cent.

Sindh with 84 per cent and Balochistan with 32 per cent, the statistics seem reassuring that education is available to a lot of young people in KP.

However, despite the doom and gloom scenario in the province with news of schools being attacked filtering in everyday, it is heartening to see little changes that these reports and studies often tend to overlook.

For instance, take girls’ education in KP where tribal customs and conservative attitudes prevent females from taking lead. It is interesting to see how the desire to send one’s female child to school is more than just a want, its more of a need. Also, despite the lack of quality education, many lives are being changed due to literacy, maybe not in monetary terms but rather enlightenment and awareness, giving one the power to question and improve some aspects.

A case in point here is Raheela, the school girl whose parents pay Rs25 a month as school fee. The force behind Raheela is Kabalay, her mother. A woman in her early 30s, she is the wife of a driver and mother to eight children.

When questioned as to what prompted her to send her daughters to school, she says, “I want them to study and do well in their lives. More than me, it’s my mother-in-law who insisted that we send our children to school.

“In our culture, women who step out of the house are looked down upon but times are changing. I can’t read or write but through my children I am able to see the world in a different light.”

Kabalay says she wants her children to have the best in the world, “But I hardly have the means.

“I know in a couple of years my husband will marry off Raheela, but till that time, I want her to have whatever freedom and happiness she can have,” she says, her voice filling with motherly emotions, a mixture of part happiness and part fear of the unknown.

“In the society that we live in, it’s important that we give our girls the strength to become strong. I am uneducated but for my daughter I want to unlock all doors that lead to success,” says Mrs Afreen Khan, a middle-aged woman who shared similar sentiments to those of Kabalay.

“We have been through the worse and hopefully things will improve for the girls in this valley,” says Mrs Khan, a resident of Manglor, a small, scenic town in Swat.

Standing at the ruins of Public School Sangota, Mrs Khan and her daughter Afsheen Khan Yousafzai, gave a rundown of the brutalities of the insurgency that left Swat Valley bloodied.

Public School Sangota was set up in 1965 by Miangul Jahanzeb, popularly known as Wali Sahib, the last ruler of Swat. Over the years, the school became well known for its academic excellence and helped many brilliant students, particularly girls, move up the socio-economic ladder.

“On October 7, 2008, my school was bombed by the Taliban. I was in class nine then. But even before the bombing, we were being threatened,” says Afsheen, her piercing eyes scanning the rubble, as she recollects fond memories of the school.

In October 2007, the Pakistan Army launched an operation against the Taliban. But before peace could be restored, some 400 schools were destroyed by the Taliban, with Public School Sangota becoming a casualty.

“Once the Taliban came, the school became an easy target, with the insurgents threatening to bomb the place and pour acid on the girls if they refused to wear the burqa. Many of my friends dropped out. And then eventually on that fateful day, the school was bombed along with the boys’ section, known as Excelsior College,” recalls Afsheen.

“The situation was very bad then. After the school was bombed, many of us sent our children to Mingora, with the kids walking all the way,” says Mrs Khan.

“Here girls get married at a very early age but I realise the importance of education. Shaadi to kabhi bhi ho saktee hay!” she says, smiling gently.

“I am happy that my husband and his family never differentiated between daughters and sons and gave them equal opportunities. Afsheen has always been passionate about her studies and as long as we can we will continue to support her.”

Currently doing her bachelor’s at the Girls Degree College, Saidu Sharif, Afsheen says that she wants to become a lawyer but won’t mind joining the army.

“I think the army did a good job of getting rid of the Taliban. We have seen a lot of blood to last us a lifetime. I want to study further and be a part of the change that aims at doing away with narrow mindedness and misogyny. To me my mother is a role model and she has set an example for me that I aim to follow.”

For Raheela and Afsheen, it’s still a long way before they realise their dreams and goals. They are more than a number of a statistic in a report. They have an uphill task, to battle societal attitudes, intolerance, poverty and whatever life brings their way. What is important is that these girls are provided more opportunities to excel. Most importantly what they also need is the nurturing by Kabalay and Mrs Khan allowing them to blossom, epitomising a change that is much needed all over the country for helping our girls to do their best.