Wasim Ahmed Ahanger
A few days ago I was scrolling down Facebook where I accidently came across a post of pseudo-journalist, whose journalistic credentials (if there are any) are not known to me, was uttering some words like CHALTAY CHALTAY(چلتے چلتے) and was asking question to by-walkers. To his online viewers, “Why are government teachers admitting their children to the private institutions?” At first I paid no heed to these utterly nonsense questions, like Churchill says, “You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks. later the ultra-simple people of this unfortunate part of the globe joined the bandwagon and began to demonize the poor teacher community by pasting/posting hundreds of pinching comments. I being a teacher and son of a poor government teacher got a sleepless night and finally had to call a leading psychiatrist of the valley to suggest me a way out of this mental agony. I can recall how a son of a poor teacher, notwithstanding the circumstances created by society and pseudo-journalists (like this person) had to take the extreme step of committing suicide just because his father being a teacher was not being paid salary for many months.
I fail to understand how an ordinary person picks a low end phone with some mics and camera becomes a celebrity journalist all of a sudden and gets hundreds of followers instantly. We have been very much particular in bringing a simplest of person into limelight making him a celebrity like that of Scorpio guy, Babbar Sher Guy etc. To ask questions and to bring issues to fore is prime responsibility of every citizen particularly the journo but while doing so it requires some ethics or one can say journalistic ethics to ask these questions in such a way that no one feels offended or dejected. This Mr. Journalist and his ilk should first of all ponder over this fact that the people of this part of the globe, irrespective of their age, sex, creed etc. have been unfortunate enough from past many decades and there seems no respite in the near future also to come out of these trying and testing circumstances. We, as collectively, have failed to do justice with these noble souls. Whenever, wherever and whatever untoward happens, the buck is passed on the feeble shoulders of these poor noble souls.
کہا پہاڑ کي ندي نے سنگ ريزے سے
فتادگي و سرا فگندگي تري معراج!
ترا يہ حال کہ پامال و درد مند ہے تو
مري يہ شان کہ دريا بھي ہے مرا محتاج
جہاں ميں تو کسي ديوار سے نہ ٹکرايا
کسے خبر کہ تو ہے سنگ خارہ يا کہ زجاج
Mr. Journo have you ever asked yourself or your followers why many government schools in this technological era are operated from cow sheds, tin sheds or in open ground or even from the rented buildings, have you ever shown them shabby rooms of any government school building. Have you ever thought of visiting a laboratory of a government middle or high school, which most of times is not available there and even if it is there, it is tremendously undersupplied and underdeveloped.
Now a question might be coming into your head, why private schools are far more ahead in delivering the desired outputsthan the government run schools. There are many causes to this. Primarily let the admission to these schools be open to all; but on the contrary right at the beginningof admission process an entrance test is conducted by these private institutions to scrape-out the creamy layer. This is a no hidden thing not only the child is interviewed but his parents too are asked to sit in the entrance examination. But the children of government schools see their parents at the time of admission in the schools or at the time when scholarship forms are to be deposited or when their childs bank account has not got any scholarship amount. You do know this thing better than me that never ever has parent visited his ward’s school, talked to the concerned teachers, to know how and what his child is doing in the academics.
I know a parent of my classmate whose name I proudly mention Mr. Abdul Quyoom lone, a carpenter by profession, but totally unlettered (not uneducated). He used to visit the school, talk to the teachers about his children. I was shocked to know when my father told me he is totally unlettered, and he every evening asked his children what they had learnt in the school that very particular day, pretending to his children that he was not unlettered and guess what his children came to know about this very much later, when their father had got them admitted in various professional colleges. This is the level of dedication. Our schools give a shabby and uncomfortable, when there are no students, when their parents have to plant new trees, saplings, do the harvesting etc. or even the marriage season. Even if nobody is visible in the marriage tent, you will see the student of government school there talking to the decorated cloth of shaamiyaana (Shakespeares Soliloquy), making water available the guests, doing oddly chores. And to add to the insult the parents themselves come to the school as intermediates, sir please grant our ward leave as the marriage of his dead grandmothers distant aunts son if falling on this and that date. For Allahs sake show some respect to these souls, let them die a peaceful death. Otherwise Im sure we all as a society are doomed.
Secondly have you ever seen the books of lower classes, I mean from 1st to 5th. They are below par when compared to the books and syllabus of private institutions. We still are being taught in middle classes Parts Of Speech and similar concepts of other subjects. Coz our students from the lower classes have never known these things due to the standard of books. Let the government set common curriculum for all institutions whether government or private, let KG classes be started with full might and vigor in government schools. It is ironical that we send fetuses (read it as such) not babies with feeders and diapers to the crèche and preparatory schoolsjust having this sole motive that they must get admitted to some prestigious private institution, ask yourself what will be the result, when they get permission to be admitted to any private school.
We as society have failed every person who is somehow related to the education field particularly the government teachers. Dont we have this tale on every tongue, Mashterr, he himself takes honey (MASH) and tells lies (tarr) to the people. Have you ever heard people like you uttering same words about a doctor (DAKHTARR) he does destruction (DAKH) by telling lies (TARR) or similar words for other government officials or professionals. No, never. I can recall an episode when a person asked about my father in these words, “Gulle Mashtarr Katti Chu, Patwaer Sob Chuss Chaadaan (No offence to my Patwari brethren or doctors). This is the level of mental bankruptcy of this society of ours of whose I and you are sorry components. My father being a teacher, like other government teachers, has moulded numerous students into respectable citizens, government and private officials of high or low ranks, but they became Soub (Sahib) but my father has ever always remained Gulle like his colleagues who also have been Nabbe, Sulle and the list goes on .
Now coming to the question why dont government teachers admit their wards into the government schools. But address on this question is wrong, it should be asked to the policy makers and to those who are in the power corridors. When would you Sahibs admit your children to the government schools? There is a thing in behavioral sciences known as downward filtration theory, when a common man sees a man of influence doing any action, it automatically seeps down into lower strata of the society and you instantly see the people following the example set by that person of influence. Let charity begin at home, let you and every Babu , let every government employee get his/her ward admitted into the government schools, then you will see the educational setup of JK becoming the beacon of light. Also have you ever asked any health personnel why they go to private clinics (which of course is their democratic right), which Im sure you too might have preferred in past and will continue to so do in future, even when we have world class medical practitioners and equipment. No you won’t because teacher is an easy target for every TOM DICK and HARRY.
Hope good sense prevails and you come with suggestions not questions so that this ailing sector gets uplifted.
Author is a Government Teacher and Son of a Government Teacher
