Private schools that have neither sufficient teachers nor facilities must be brought in hand people say.
Killid investigated the situation in three provinces: Herat, Badghis and Farah. Abdul Razaq Ahmadi, head of Herat education department, says a third of the 137 active private schools are not following the rules. “At the primary level all schools follow the curriculum of the Ministry of Education but at the secondary level they try and make money any which way,” he says.
An informal survey shows the schools have issued school leaving certificates even where the student is short of attendance for a money consideration. Ahmadi says at least 20 letters have been sent to schools breaching the rules threatening legal action but to no avail. The department has proceeded against two schools, forwarding their case to the Attorney General Office. If violations are proved, the schools will be shut down, he warns.
The private schools union in Herat blames the impossible-to-meet rules of the Ministry of Education for the lapses. Private schools are viewed through a commercial lens, says Abdul Qudoos Yasinzada, head of the union. “For instance the taxes that the government takes from the private schools are very high, the insurance on private schools is compulsory, and apart from the education ministry that issues a licence to private schools, the municipalities and AISA (Afghanistan Investment Support Agency) also demand a licence fee so that they can earn money,” he says.
He says three quarters of private schools are mired in financial problems; eight school owners have sold their licences, and 30 others that have not paid taxes for years are likely to be shut down by the government.
As a result one fourth of private schools insist they have no choice but to charge high fees, underpay teachers, sell school-leaving certificates and other corrupt practices to meet the tax and other money demands from the authorities.
Yasinzada says their problems have been raised several times with officials in the Ministry of Education but since the minister has not been told about the “illegal” money demands that are regularly made, no action has been taken to rein in corruption.
Educationist Abdul Qayoom Pedram thinks that if the government was to lower its financial demands on private schools, the schools would invest in improving the quality of education.
Killid interviewed students and parents for their views on the situation in private schools. Mohammad Yaser, who studied in a private school for two years and is now back in a government school says, “I left because monthly school fees were high and quality of education poor.”
Sakhi Dad, a parent, says he enrolled his three boys in a private school for one year. “I saw there was no improvement in the teaching, and moved them back to a government school.”
Farah
Ahmad Fareed Bakhtawar, member of the Farah provincial council and former head of the council, says private schools are money making establishments, and the provincial education department does nothing to monitor. Mohammad Saber Farooqi, the head of education in Farah, rejects the claim. According to him, there are 13 private schools in the province and their functioning is monitored on a monthly basis by the education department.
Badghis
Abdul Qayoom Sajedi, the head of education in Badghis province says there are three private schools in the province, and competition between them is the only problem. Since there are simply not enough government schools in the province, he considers private schools as fulfilling a serious lacuna. He describes private schools as a “powerful arm of the government”.
