Only Education Can Save Pakistan
According to the UNESCO research, it is said that
the social and physical edifices of modern society stand upon the foundations
of education. Uneven and weak foundations make a bad base and this is what we
have in Pakistan; a society that is uneven and fragile, which can be attributed
to the ignorance and indoctrination that we spread in the name of education. Education
in its classic sense is a means to character building and furthering the cause
of civilization. Everyone seems to agree on this, so what is the problem? The issue
that needs to be addressed concerns the fundamental meaning of the term education.
Is just teaching our children skills sufficient to read, write and become cogs
in the ever expanding industrial behemoth of this capitalistic world enough? Or
is their more to it than that?
To find an answer to this rather confounding
question we will have to developer and go back to the basics and redefine terms
like education, civilization and character. The meaning of these terms has
broadened with the passage of time. In today’s world, education is not only a
conduit to pass on society’s collective will knowledge and values to posterity
but is also a means to equip young people with the necessary tools and skills
to live in a society founded on the principles of democracy, tolerance and
equality for all. In a more practical and physical sense, education should not
only train the younger generation to face and tackle the situations and
challenges of a technological and ever changing world but also prepare them to
live in a civilized world that is at peace with itself. In other words the
youth of a society should not only have a firm grasp on the values that their
society as an entity believes in but should also be taught to respect and tolerate the values and
beliefs of other societies and communities.
Education leads to yet another question; what can
education do to create a just tolerant and democratic society? To achieve the
goal of education in its most modern and academic sense societies have to
devise and crate curricula and syllabi that encourage critical thinking, and
inspire a scientific approach based on objectivity towards issues and problems
in everyday life. Members of an educated and enlightened society should have
the mental capacity and intellectual courage to question every thing. Syllabi that
make students think critically and objectively are harbingers of success and happiness in a society. Education, which
supports and emphasizes scientific thinking, ultimately creates a populace that
is not a blind followers of whatever they are told, and cannot be sacrificed on
the altar of fake national ego and the political interests of certain groups
and individuals.
An educated and academically robust citizenry is a
great asset for any state. This kind of population is a must for a thriving
economy, vibrant democracy and stable society. Education no indoctrination
based on falsification of history, distortion of culture and demonization of
others is the only way to achieve prosperity and respect in the comity of nations
for Pakistan. If the leaders and the rulers are interested which they do not
seem to be in the nurturing of a democratic and educated society then they
really need to address the root cause of the problem which is ignorance and the
uneducated illiterates that we produce through our present educational system. The
first step in the right direction will be changing the curricula and syllabi
and making them more thought provoking and objective. This will require a lot
of courage, planning and guts on the part of the leadership but is the only way
left for us to move forward. Yes this
will not solve all our problems overnight but it will be the first step in the
light direction, this small step will be a giant leap for our educational
system.
