THE abysmal condition of social science education in Pakistan has been a topic of some discussion over the last decade. Summarily speaking, the issues found to be plaguing the study of history, anthropology, sociology, political science, and economics by and large revolve around the quality of teaching and research: curricula is outdated; teaching practices are incredibly non-reflexive and disengaging; and the consequent research at the domestic doctorate level is insipid and repetitive.

This rot is best captured by the almost annual publication of dissertations on topics like ‘Iqbal’s Two-Nation Theory’, or the ‘Khilafat Movement’, all of which are ideologically tinted, and none bother proffering new empirics or insights. The same research students end up as lecturers thus ensuring the perpetuation of a severely sub-optimal equilibrium.

This sub-optimal condition is also reinforced by the massive gulf between the global frontiers of these disciplines and the status of curricula in Pakistan. Political science education in the country, for example, is still stuck in grand-narrative mode, while the world has graduated to the use of large-n survey data and other forms of verifiable empirics to prove hypotheses. Divides such as this one perpetuate the absence of competitive and collaborative linkages with researchers abroad — even with those based in India, let alone Europe or the US.

These issues, problematic as they are, remain mere outcomes produced by years of state tinkering with higher education. The race to the top of the academic profession — especially for coveted, HEC-buttered positions — is a careful pantomime in pleasing the right people, and producing ideologically ‘correct’ research.

Nearly all social science departments have become vehicles for patronage disbursement, often manifesting in the shape of residential plots and other employment benefits, while monetary incentives attached to research have produced large quantities of substandard or outright plagiarised publications.

The bigger perversion though is produced by the perpetuation of ‘national agendas’ through the social sciences. The introduction of Pakistan Studies as a compulsory, all-encompassing discipline has effectively straitjacketed research in history, and to a lesser extent in political science and sociology. The ideological contours of state-approved textbooks leave little to no room for critical engagement or reflexive thinking, and have ended up shaping an entire generation of domestically trained ‘quacks’ passing as academics.

Given the scale of the rot, improving the state of social science education in the country is a no-brainer. Why this should happen though can be answered in two ways — one far easier to digest than the other. The first is to suggest that unfettered pursuit of deeper, critical knowledge in all disciplines is intrinsically good, and an end in and of itself. Unfortunately, in a society completely hung up on the aspiration-serving benefits of technical education, this particular view garners no traction. Careerism inevitably dots every conversation on the social sciences, and the usual response is that ‘luxuries’ such as history or sociology do not put food — or at least enough food — on the table.

The second approach is more functional, and addresses the issue in the language of national development and policymaking. In a nutshell, qualified social scientists — not just economists, but also historians, sociologists, political scientists and anthropologists — can generate research and data that has implications for how the government approaches the many developmental challenges it faces.

There is also the much-needed advantage that comes with improving the knowledge base and critical thinking ability within segments of society receiving higher education in the social sciences — such as most bureaucrats, schoolteachers and media professionals.

The best example of this particular way of thinking was the Indian government’s formation of Jawaharlal Nehru University in 1969. The legislative act that founded the university highlights the need to produce researchers qualified to provide policymakers with objective data and insights on various facets of the country. By providing generous funding, and allowing unfettered academic research, the Indian government has played its part in consolidating what is now probably the best social science institute in all of Asia.

The Pakistani government could do well to follow the example of its neighbour and reshape its own intervention in higher education. For starters, the discipline of Pakistan Studies should be made non-compulsory at the university level. It serves a distortionary purpose, and has, in all likelihood, perpetuated polemical, blinkered views within and outside academia.

Secondly, the few top-tier Pakistani social scientists in or outside the country need to be engaged to reshape teaching and research at public varsities.

Thirdly, HEC funding for foreign social science doctoral studies and research needs to be increased, even if it comes at the cost of the applied sciences. There is little advantage in accumulating highly qualified biotechnology PhDs given the absence of sophisticated research infrastructure in their discipline.

On the other hand, social science researchers require far less from the government in the way of funding and infrastructure, and they could inevitably produce viable and globally competitive research in more conducive conditions.

Ultimately though, what needs to be understood is that Pakistan requires a drastic improvement in the quality of social science education, and that the final responsibility for this rests with the government. The private sector caters to the technical education fetish of the country’s upwardly mobile middle class, and the remaining odd endeavour such as LUMS, or more recently, IBA’s new programmes and the formation of Habib University remain accessible to a very small portion of the population.

Without urgent recalibration by the state, the problems plaguing academia and research, and hence public life in Pakistan, will continue to grow exponentially.

The writer is a freelance columnist.

umairjaved87@gmail.com