By: Rana Farooq Ashraf
Published By: ANI News Agency
What is happening in France today should not be viewed merely as another student protest. It is a warning about what happens when young people begin to believe that their education, opportunities and future are being compromised.
In recent weeks, French high-school students have taken to the streets, blocking schools and protesting against overcrowded classrooms, shortages of teachers, deteriorating infrastructure and inadequate educational facilities. Their anger reflects a broader frustration with the rising cost of living, economic pressure and policies that, in their view, are making education increasingly unequal.
For Pakistan, the French experience should be less a matter of political comparison and more a moment for serious reflection.
The fundamental question is simple: Are we going to reform our education system before frustration among our own young generation becomes a social crisis?
Pakistan's educational situation is deeply concerning. According to UNICEF, around 25.1 million children between the ages of 5 and 16 are out of school, representing roughly 35 percent of children in that age group. At the same time, public spending on education remains far below what is required to build a competitive human-capital base.
But access is only one part of the crisis.
The more disturbing issue is the quality of education. According to the World Bank, approximately 78 percent of Pakistani children around the age of ten cannot read and understand a simple age-appropriate text. This means that even among children who attend school, a large proportion are not acquiring the basic skills necessary for further education, employment and productive participation in society.
Pakistan therefore faces two crises simultaneously: millions of children are outside the education system, while millions of others are inside schools but are not receiving the quality of education they deserve.
The situation becomes even more complicated because Pakistan has gradually developed a two-tier education system.
On one side are government schools, many of which continue to struggle with inadequate infrastructure, teacher shortages, weak accountability and uneven educational standards. On the other side is a rapidly expanding private education sector, which has become the preferred choice for many parents who can afford it.
The private sector itself is not the problem. Private schools can make an important contribution to national education. The real problem emerges when education becomes primarily a commercial commodity rather than a regulated public responsibility.
For millions of middle-class and lower-middle-class families, this is already a harsh reality.
Parents pay school fees, admission charges, books, uniforms, transportation and numerous additional expenses. At the same time, they face rising food, electricity, fuel, housing and healthcare costs. Education is increasingly consuming a significant share of household income.
The result is a dangerous situation: families are being forced to choose between maintaining a reasonable standard of living and providing their children with what they consider an acceptable education.
This cannot be allowed to become the permanent model of Pakistani education.
The state must establish a serious system of educational accountability and quality control for both public and private institutions. Government schools should be independently assessed on learning outcomes, teacher attendance, infrastructure and student performance. Private schools should be subject to transparent standards concerning fees, facilities, teacher qualifications, classroom capacity, child protection and academic outcomes.
Most importantly, these standards must actually be enforced.
Pakistan does not need another education policy that remains largely on paper. It needs measurable targets, transparent monitoring and consequences for persistent failure.
We also need to ask a more fundamental question: What kind of society are we creating when the quality of a child's education increasingly depends upon the financial capacity of his or her parents?
Education is supposed to reduce inequality. If education itself becomes one of the principal mechanisms through which inequality is reproduced, the consequences will extend far beyond schools.
A child who receives quality education has a greater chance of escaping poverty. A child who receives poor education is more likely to remain trapped in low-productivity employment and economic insecurity. In this sense, education policy is not simply social policy; it is economic policy, employment policy and national-security policy.
The developments in France should therefore serve as a warning rather than a model for confrontation. Pakistan should not wait for students to occupy schools or families to take to the streets before policymakers recognise the seriousness of the problem.
Our children should not have to protest to prove that they deserve quality education.
The responsibility lies with policymakers, education authorities, school administrations, parents, teachers and society as a whole. We need a national conversation about what education should deliver, how it should be financed and how every institution—public or private—should be held accountable.
Pakistan's greatest resource is not its land, minerals or geography. It is its people.
And the quality of tomorrow's Pakistan will ultimately depend upon the quality of education we provide to today's children.
France is giving the world a warning. Pakistan still has the opportunity to learn from it without repeating the same path.
Education cannot simply be allowed to become a business for those who can afford it and a struggle for those who cannot.
Education is a national responsibility. It is the foundation of social mobility, economic progress and a stable society. If we fail our children in the classroom today, we will eventually pay the price as a nation tomorrow.
