APROPOS the article ‘Child at the centre’ by Zubeida Mustafa (Oct 12) and her plea that teachers must be properly trained.

Untrained teachers spoil students who come from uneducated families. In most cases their parents are ready to accept their refusal to attend school and happy to make them work in fields or other places. As she tells us 23 million children out-of-school are a serious problem for Pakistan. I see many children wandering around with no purpose in the streets of the village where I teach.

Moreover, students who attend primary school do not continue their education because there are no high schools in their villages.

I find girls are more enthusiastic in their approach, but unfortunately they fall victim to gender discrimination and are forced to give up their education after primary school.

Khalid Mehmood

Dadu

Published in Dawn, November 17th, 2018