A School Fit for
Learning in a rural setting
10th June 2016
Over 800 boys of the Government Higher Secondary School, Ziarat Talash in Lower Dir now have a good reason to look forward to a fulfilling day. Until recently, their classes were held in a dilapidated building with depressing rooms. The building long neglected has now been transformed into one with a row of neat rooms with galvanised windows, fans, a smooth floor and an insulated roof giving the place a spick and span look.
Lower Dir is one of KPs remote districts that is lagging behind in terms of quality education and other social services. The rehabilitated school building in Lower Dir sends a strong signal that school infrastructure improvement is coming to long neglected remote rural areas.
Happy in a school fit for learning.
The rehabilitation work at GHSS Ziarat Talash is not limited to the classrooms. The addition of new science and IT labs that provide a comfortable, well lit environment is a cause for great excitement among the students, teachers and the community.
Perhaps, the persistent low enrolment and high dropout has to do with children and parents losing confidence in the safety of the school building. Over the years, natural disasters such as earth quakes and poor maintenance took its toll, turning a sub-standard construction into a scary hazard. Classes were held in the open or under heavily-cracked roofs which would leak in the rain.
“The earthquake had severely damaged the building, especially roofs and columns,” the school’s head teacher Ameen ul Haq recalled the conditions under which classes were conducted as the teaching has to be continued.
“There are some basic services which every school should have, like safe classrooms, clean toilets, and safe drinking water. Our school had none of these things”
“There are some basic services which every school should have, like safe classrooms, clean toilets, and safe drinking water. Our school had none of these things”, He emphasised.
Similar sentiments were expressed by Mr. Attaullah Khan, chairman of the school’s Community Committee for School Infrastructure (CCSI).
“It was the sheer resilience of the students and their parents that kept them in school, despite the dismal conditions. Thank God, all of that is in the past. Now we take pride in taking visitors around and want to make our school even better,” he said.
"The school is ours and we are proud of being associated with it" - Head Teacher
Visitors to the school are now greeted with improved landscaping, seasonal flower plants, a newly paved walkway and freshly painted rooms giving the school a child friendly ambiance.
“The upkeep has had a positive effect on the students. They no longer believe that the school is the sole responsibility of the government. We now say that the school is ours and we are proud of being associated with it,” said the head teacher.
“The renovated building makes a big difference and looks really nice. I want my younger brothers to come to school and make their life”
Shahid Alam, a grade 10 student can feel the difference in the environment and the excitement of the new building isn’t limited to the students.
“The renovated building makes a big difference and looks really nice. I want my younger brothers to come to school and make their life”.
Across the two provinces of KP and Punjab, the School Construction and Rehabilitation Programme assisted by DFID is adding quality space and missing facilities at Primary Schools, Higher Secondary Schools and Dangerous Buildings. The Programme is dedicated to building 3100 new classrooms and 2000 toilets in over 1000 schools in the nine districts of KP which include Peshawar, Mardan, Charsadda, Nowshera, Lower Dir, Haripur, Chitral, Abbotabad and Kohat. Along with building new classrooms, 3000 existing classrooms are being rehabilitated to provide quality space for achieving better educational outcomes.