GILGIT: The Gilgit-Baltistan government has been facing severe criticism over the poor education standard in public schools after most students in grades five and eight failed the regional exams.

The poor results have also triggered protests across GB.

The result of the exam, conducted by the Board of Elementary Examination Gilgit-Baltistan, was announced in the first week of February.

According to the result, only 41 per cent of students in Grade 5 passed the exam, while the passing rate for Grade 8 was 29pc.

Meanwhile, on Thurs­day, demonstrations were held in various areas of GB over the poor standard of government schools.

In Hoper village of Nagar district, girls blocked the Hoper Valley road at Hakalashal to protest the lack of facilities and shortage of teachers in their school.

They said their studies have suffered due to the shortage of teachers, particularly for teaching science subjects.

They also opposed the plans to merge their school with boys, stating that such a move would compromise their right to education.

The future of students was at stake and the administration, instead of solving the problems, “threatened us with FIR” for protesting, the students claimed.

Students in Chilas also protested against the administration for poor results. They demanded a retake of grades 5 and 8 exams.

Meanwhile, the police arrested activist Raja Abid from Chilas for holding the protest.

Despite his arrest, Mr Abid vowed to continue his protest for “better educational opportunities and ensuring access to quality education for students in remote areas of GB”.

Following the protests, GB Chief Secretary Abrar Ahmad Mirza took notice of the results and directed the region’s education ministry to form a committee to improve education standards.

According to a statement, the committee of experts will make recommendations to improve teaching standards, assessment, and training processes in public schools.

This team comprises teachers, educators and assessment experts who will work to improve the primary and elementary education sector in GB.

The team will conduct a detailed analysis of the curriculum, assessment procedures and training programmes to improve the quality of teachers, their development and the use of modern assessment methods.

In a press conference on Thursday, GB Education Minister Ghulam Shahzad Agha said the poor results were “disappointing”.

He said a high-level investigation was being conducted to identify those responsible for the poor performance of public school students.

Mr Agha told Dawn that the region’s education department faced multiple issues, including the shortage of teachers, inadequate facilities, and poor infrastructure.

“There is no centralised system to make a unified policy for education,” he claimed.

He also opposed the chief secretary’s decision to appoint deputy commissioners (DC) to monitor school performance.

The minister said it would be an “insult for education officers in each district to be monitored by a DC, who are lower ranked officers.

He said the performance of schools should be evaluated by education experts.

Published in Dawn, February 14th, 2025