MADRASSA EDUCATION IN PAKISTAN

MADRASSA EDUCATION IN PAKISTAN

(threat to peace and tolerance).

In Pakistan, traditionally madarassas have been a source of all types of knowledge for Muslims where education even in the science subjects, was provided. With the passage of time, the role of the traditional madrassas has been restricted just to impart religious education in Pakistan such religious schools have not been controlled and administered property, which is the reason why extremist elements are being produced in these religious educational centres. The history of this uncontrolled madrassa system in Pakistan dates back to the 1980s  when the US and Saudi Arabia poured almost four billion dollars for setting  up religious schools, the madrassas and since then, such schools have become the breeding ground for religious extremists in Pakistan thus worsening the security conditions even more.

Pakistan is a country which is facing acute security problems. To tackle this issue, one sector is the quality of education in religious schools, the main purpose of education is to enlighten the people, so that they can have a proper understanding about  the various issues prevailing in the country and to educate the people in such a way so that they can distinguish between the good and bad but unfortunately this is not the case in as the US Commission on International Religious Freedom has researched Pakistani school textbooks to discover that there is religious biasness in almost every madrassa, which leads to societal intolerance and maligns the minority groups.

The large number of Pakistan population lives in small towns and villages. Poverty, feudalism, illiteracy and lack of awareness leave the people with two choices, either to abandon the education of their children or to induct them in religious schools. Most of the madrasas provide free education, boarding and lodging services to the children and that  is one of the reasons that they are hijacked by religious extremist zealots who hypnotize the minds of the children, hence providing perfect recruits to the extremist organizations. The curriculum, which is taught in these madrassas needs particular importance, as it reflects Islam as a religion of war and hate. Not only in the madrassas but also in the regular schools of the country is highlighted with particular emphasis on Islamic wars, thus neglecting the fact that Islam is a religion of peace as the world Islam itself means peace, purity and submission and the wars fought in Islamic history had a proper context and reasons.

Another problem in Pakistan, which is linked with the current security situation in our society situation in our society is the various sectarian schools getting their funding and backing from Saudi Arabia and Iran while dividing Pakistani society into various sects. The sectarian violence in the country has increased over the past years, with thousands of people bing killed in the Sunni-Shia conflict.

Bold steps have to be taken by the government of Pakistan to ensure that misguided madrassas are banned. Curriculum vision has to be properly carried out. It is the authority and the right of the state to make the curriculum of educational instuties. The madrassas have to be registered and the state should have authority over the hiring and firing of the Staff. Moreover the complete overhauling of the curriculum of regular schools has to be undertaken. Peace and tolerance should be taught as a separate subject just to mould the minds of young children along the lines of acceptability and tolerance making them aware of the true picture of Islam.

Uniformity in education and removing divisions on a religious and sectarian basis are the needs of the hour. The madrassas not only widen a certain kind of ideology to students they also spread it in society to the families and extended families of these students and this has to be stopped otherwise immoral subjects like intolerance and unacceptability will rule our society. Moreover madrassas have to be modernized so that they do not seem alien to the majority of the people in Pakistan which is only possible when madrassa education does not fall prey to the extremist elements.