Pakistan education ministers to decide on reopening of schools Jan 4

• Schools reopening decision on Monday after meeting of educations ministers during the Inter-Provincial Education Ministers Conference
• IPEMC meeting agenda shared by education ministry
• Educational institutions across Pakistan are closed since November 26

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is all set to decide on the reopening of educational institutions during a meeting of education ministers on January 4 (Monday), nearly two months after the federal government had announced in November that educational institutes will remain closed from November 26 to January 10 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Students had since been studying at home or get weekly homework till December 24 and then winter vacations started December 25 and end January 10. All examinations were postponed, except admission and recruitment tests.

But now there are growing calls for the resumption of in-person learning in educational institutions.

Read more: Coronavirus: Will the academic year in Punjab be extended?

The Inter-Provincial Education Ministers Conference (IPEMC) will meet on January 4 to review the pandemic situation in the country and make a decision about the reopening of educational institutions.

According to the federal education ministry, the meeting will be chaired by Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training Shafqat Mahmood. It will be attended by other minister via video link.

The IPEMC meeting agenda

Several decisions will be made by the education ministers during their January 4 meeting. Here is what they will discuss: 

• Health updates on all provinces/regions by the national health services ministry
• Reopening of educational institutions
• School and education board exams slated to be held in May-June 2021
• Reduction in spring and summer vacation and the start of the 2021-22 academic session
• Implementation status of the Council of Common Interest’s decision on the transfer of the existing NCHD and BECS schools, and the proposed national education policy.

'Hope infections go down so we can open educational institutes'

Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood held on Friday a meeting with members of the Rawalpindi and Islamabad private schools association.

“They [visitors] are obviously concerned about schools closure. I told them that I am equally concerned. [I] Hope infection rates go down so that we can open all educational institutions,” he said in a tweet after the meeting.

Read more: Cannot say if schools would reopen on January 11: Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood

He had said a day earlier that it was unclear whether educational institutions will be allowed to reopen on January 11, 2021 keeping in view the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Talking to Geo Pakistan, the federal minister had said authorities would review the education policy considering the new highly infectious strain of COVID-19. “The final decision would be made on the advice of health ministry as this is fundamentally their domain. We cannot risk children’s health.”

Talking about the education sector’s goals for 2021, Mahmood said the PTI government was looking to implement Single National Curriculum. “It would be applied in all schools both private and public. It is a huge step in ensuring equality.”