PESHAWAR: The elementary and secondary education department has hired fewer teachers than required for government higher secondary schools in the province over the years, adversely affecting student learning, officials insist.

The officials told Dawn that 12 subjects both compulsory and elective were taught to intermediate students in higher secondary schools across the province.

They, however, said the education department had been sanctioning only 10 BPS-17 teachers instead of the required 12 for the newly-established higher secondary schools.

The officials said intermediate students were taught compulsory subjects of English, Urdu, Islamiat and Pakistan Studies besides the respective elective subjects of pre-medical, pre-engineering, computer science and humanities courses.

The principal of a higher secondary school told Dawn that at the intermediate level, every subject required a specialised teacher to attend classes in an effective manner.

“I don’t know why the high-ups of the education department have not noticed the appointment of 10 subject specialists to schools instead of the required 12,” he said.

The principal said the shortage of two teachers had forced the principals of higher secondary schools to ask the other subject specialists to take classes of the two subjects for which the government didn’t appoint teachers.

“Under such circumstances, only the students suffer as how a teacher can teach a subject that he or she doesn’t specialist in,” he said.

The principal said while notifying the sanctioning of the posts for higher secondary schools, the education department had never named the posts and instead, the notifications had a mention of 10 subject specialists of BPS-17 only.

He added that the notifications didn’t define the subjects and teachers for them leaving the relevant authorities to post teachers of own choice.

When contacted, general secretary of the School Officers Association Samiullah Khalil said the association had long been pressing the government for the recruitment of 12 subject specialists for higher secondary schools.

He said if subject specialist for Physics was missing among 10 teachers appointed to a school, then the principal requested a teacher of Chemistry to teach Physics.

“How will a teacher, who has done a master’s degree in Chemistry, teach Physics? Definitely, such a makeshift arrangement will compromise the quality of education,” he said.

A senior official of the elementary and secondary education department told Dawn that it was an old practice and not a formal policy under which the department had been posting 10 subject specialists to higher secondary schools and that no one ever tried to change it.

He said only, the Awami National Party government (2008-13) had recruited 12 subject specialists for every newly-established higher secondary school, but it ended thereafter for not a permanent policy.

The official said it was wrong to provide teachers fewer than required to schools as it adversely affected student learning.

“Sometimes, we don’t offer elective subjects to the students due to the unavailability of teachers though it is their right to study such subjects,” a principal said.

Elementary and secondary education minister Shahram Khan Tarakai was not available for version on the matter.

Published in Dawn, September 22nd, 2021