PESHAWAR: The elementary and secondary education department on Sunday issued guidelines for summer camps in public and private schools to cover the learning losses that occurred due to shortening the week to four days in light of the petroleum crisis that emerged in the wake of the Iran-US war.

The guidelines have been issued for the successful conduct of camps in all summer zone schools of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and will be applicable for the month of June, says a notification.

The secretary of the elementary and secondary education department, Mohammad Khalid, told Dawn that students’ time was wasted due to the petroleum crisis, which would be regained in the summer vacations by setting up camps for a few hours in the morning.

“We will focus on foundational literacy and numeracy to improve the learning level of students,” he said. He added that teachers would mainly focus on important subjects to improve students’ academic level.

Govt issues guidelines; official says time of students was wasted owing to fuel crisis

“Enrolment campaign is already in progress. The closure of schools will affect the drive,” he said, adding that an assessment would be made at the end of summer camps to know about its impact.

The students of primary grades KG, I & II shall be exempted from summer camps while students of grades III, IV and V and middle grades (VI, VII and VIII) shall attend camps for the subjects of English, Urdu, mathematics and general science/general knowledge from 7am to 9am. Each class will be of 30 minutes duration.

The notification states that foundational literacy and numeracy for primary grades and remedial learning shall be the primary areas of focus. Activity/project-based learning approach shall be adopted to cover learning losses in the academic year 2025-26, it adds.

Students of middle grades shall attend summer camps in accordance with the schedule from June 1, 2026, to June 30, 2026. As per the instructions of education department, schools will conduct comprehensive orientation of new courses and connected student learning outcomes (SLOs) of English, Urdu, mathematics and general science subjects.

Special emphasis shall be placed on conceptual and SLO-based learning, diagnostic assessment, activity-based instruction and project-based learning to enhance students’ understanding and academic performance.

Students of high and higher secondary grades will also attend summer camps in accordance with the schedule, says the notification.

However, students of intermediate classes appearing in annual practical examinations shall be exempted only for the days of their practical in the ongoing annual examination.

During the summer camps, schools shall focus exclusively on academic and learning activities. Students shall not be engaged in morning assemblies, sports events, Bazm-i-Adab activities, guest speaker sessions or any other co-curricular activities, so as to ensure that maximum time is devoted to teaching and learning.

The Directorate of Curriculum and Teacher Education (DCTE), Abbottabad, shall conduct an assessment of schools based on the tasks assigned during the summer camp. The evaluation process shall be completed by June 29, 2026, and the findings shall be submitted to the competent authority for further action, it says.

Based on this evaluation, the best teachers and students at the district level will be given awards and cash prizes. The district education officers (DEOs) will organise closing ceremonies on June 30, 2026 in their respective districts.

The event will comprise an award giving ceremony, exhibition of student projects and jubilation activities to highlight the achievements and outcomes of summer camp.

The representative of provincial government at district level will distribute awards and certificates among the best-performing teachers and students. All teachers will remain present and perform their duties assigned by school heads during the summer camp.

The school management will ensure provision of basic facilities like clean drinking water, running washrooms and electricity etc.

All officers of the directorate of education and district education offices, including ASDEOs and school leaders, shall essentially visit schools during summer camps and shall spend a minimum of two hours per day in schools to facilitate, monitor, and support the implementation of summer camp activities, says the notification.

The DEOs shall develop comprehensive visit schedules and ensure strict compliance with the same. The director general of education monitoring authority will mobilise monitoring workforce to visit schools and submit a comprehensive report at its conclusion.

During the summer camp, all schools shall conduct comprehensive enrolment campaign to achieve the target set by education department. All schools (including private and public sector) shall not extend the summer camp timing beyond 10am in any case.

Published in Dawn, June 1st, 2026