ISLAMABAD-The educationists and academia on Monday urged government to provide more facilities in public-sector schools to achieve its target of quality education.

This was stated in a seminar titled ‘Quality Education and Our Responsibilities’ organised by education forum Islamabad which was attended by various stakeholders including educationists, parents and representatives of different private and public sector education associations.

The participants stressed that if the government was serious to enhance quality of education, it should enhance the existing facilities in the public-sector educational institutions.

“It’s very regretting that currently there are around 80 students in a room”, said a speaker Sadaf Zahra, adding that providing standard education in such atmosphere is impossible. Zahra recalled that situation in this regard in private educational institutions was, however, better as they enrolled only 20 students in each section.

While highlighting overwhelming issues in the country’s education system, an education expert Akbar Yazdani said that education quality, especially in public sector schools, was on the verge of collapse.

He suggested that only tall claims being made by the incumbent government, like its predecessors, were not enough but it was time of taking practical measures to raise the literacy level in the country.

“Currently, over 2.5 million children are out of schools and bringing them in schools is the daunting task for the government” Yazdani recalled, suggesting that the government should consult and take on board private educational organisations other than improving facilities in the public-sector to enroll all children in the schools as, he claimed, private schools played pivotal role in boosting literacy rate in the country.

Prime Minster Imran Khan had announced ambitiously that the government would make all out efforts to enroll every child who so for remained away from the school.

President All Pakistan School and College Association Dr Zohfran Ilhai said on the occasion that the 25 percent of private schools were running in rented or leased buildings and were spending major chunk of fee collected from their students on buildings’ rents and other utilities, adding that ultimately owners of these schools would be compelled to shut down their branches.

“This strategy would increase the burden on public sector”, he feared.

A parent Maimoona said that due to unavailability of proper facilities and quality education, the parents were compelled turn to private schools. She referred to some reports, according to which, many public sector educational institutions in Punjab, Sindh and even in Islamabad did not have boundary walls and toilets.