1. It's difficult to comment on the proposed Single National Curriculum until the document is made public. Fears that it will allow the state to indoctrinate students with religious and nationalist dogma are not misplaced, but remember this has already been happening for decades.
2. Pakistan Studies and Islamiyat already serve as vehicles for spreading the state's official ideology, the imprint of which can also be seen in other subjects. Just take a look at textbooks on science or the humanities to find evidence for this.
3. Also remember that laws like the Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board Act of 2015 enable the state to regulate what is taught in schools and ensure it conforms to the state's nationalist and religious narrative.
4. Having said that, there are other aspects of the proposed curriculum that need to be considered. One of its apparent aims is to regularize and improve the curriculum taught in madrassahs. This is a laudable aim that should be supported.
5. Similarly, what little we do know about the proposed curriculum suggests that it also aims to introduce a more holistic, activity-based approached to learning that improves educational outcomes for all students. Again, this is commendable.
6. What needs to be discussed however is the extent to which the stated aims of the Curriculum can and will be achieved. While the debate thus far has focused on 'religious' aspects, what we really need to focus on is the design of the curriculum - can it deliver its objectives?
7. Related to this, does Pakistan have the capacity and infrastructure to implement it? This includes teacher training, content production, school facilities, and so on? The curriculum is meaningless, whatever its merits, if it cannot be developed and taught effectively
8. We need to be constantly wary of the state's attempts to stifle debate through the imposition of its ideology. That aspect of the proposed curriculum does merit scrutiny. However, there are more basic, fundamental issues around education that should not be ignored.
9. Education in Pakistan needs more resources and political commitment. The curriculum does need reform (and the nature of that reform must be debated) but the 'best' curriculum in the world is just a piece of paper if there is no capacity to actually teach it.
10. The debate around it will undoubtedly continue once it is made public, but let's not forget the urgent and pressing need to improve the entire system of education in Pakistan. The Curriculum on its own cannot do that (although it could, if done poorly, make things worse).
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