Private Schools

I am a teacher by profession but this is unfortunate that I've to teach in a private school of my city. I as fascinated by the name of this school exactly 1 year back from now. I, as a fresh graduate, needed a job and was almost dancing with joy when I was offered "internship" at this school. We, a group of 5 students, joined them as internees at a handsome amount (Rs 9000 was considered by us as a handsome amount being a trainee at that time). But the charm vanished just after a few months. We were time and again refused for any increase in pay. The environment was helpful in training but the disgrace and a kind of humiliation, undue pressure exerted on the employees was unbearable. Now after one year, we are only two there. And I am also planning to leave this school to concentrate on M Phil Applied Linguistics plus work as a freelance translator.

I admit that I've learnt a lot from there. I was trained from a raw teacher to a professional, I learnt how to deal with parents, how to contain my anger while teaching, how to teach effectively, but still I do not feel comfortable there. There is an air of mistrust. The junior staff is burdened with extra work while seniors sit and relax. The organization is always suspicious that this person is going to run away. They do not want to pay, so there is no incentive for hard working. The old crows, the teachers who are working there for several years are the only things which can survive in that environment, new staff usually runs away after one year, as I am now planning to go away.

Perhaps same is the situation with every private organization. But I've learnt one thing that these private schools are money making factories. The teachers working there are labourers in colourful clothes. And the product the produce is half Pakistani half English O/A level graduates who feel it very hard to integrate with traditional educational system of Pakistan when they have to pass entry tests for MBBS or UET (engineering). They are the children of factory owners, and their Faisalabad lies around Canal Road, D Ground, Madina Town, Peoples Colony and other posh areas of the city.

Well, the post is diverting from the topic. My aim was to write about the atrocities of these private employers who are sucking blood from the veins of nation on the name of education.