PRIME Minister Imran Khan, who mostly delivers extempore speeches on different occasions, on Wednesday termed the English medium system as ‘mental slavery’ and expressed the confidence that the uniform syllabus introduced by his Government would go a long way in bringing about a change of thinking and attitude in the country.
Addressing the Punjab Education Convention in Lahore, he said the English medium education system introduced by the British rulers has alienated the students from their basic culture and blamed the negative use of cellular phones and Internet for rising sexual crimes.
There is no doubt that education apartheid created a system in the country where children of the elite dominated the society and ruled while those of the common citizens served mostly as working class.
However, throughout the history of the country, there was confusion and lack of clarity as to what needed to be done to improve the situation and provide equal opportunities to children hailing from ordinary citizens.
Actually, English is not a problem as it is a universal language of communication but the contents of the English medium syllabus and the way students are groomed there dented our national culture, which has rightly been termed as ‘mental slavery’ by the Prime Minister.
That is why he regretted that the past rulers never laid emphasis upon the education sector and they never thought of a uniform curriculum in the country.
English should continue to receive proper attention both by public sector and private sector educational institutions as it is a key element for success in practical life especially when comprehensive reading and teaching material on different subjects, especially modern and emerging technologies is not available in the national language.
It is also a prerequisite for students who intend to pursue higher education abroad besides grabbing employment opportunities in the world market.
However, this should not mean promotion of English at the cost of national language, which must gradually be made the official language of the country as this would help improve governance and resolve day-to-day problems of the masses in a better way.
