PESHAWAR: School teachers across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) will soon need a licence to continue teaching as part of the provincial government’s efforts to improve education standards, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education announced.
According to an official notification, only registered and licensed teachers will be allowed to teach in schools. A special regulatory body will be set up to manage the licensing system. This body will issue new licences, renew existing ones, and evaluate teachers’ performance regularly.
The department has allocated Rs200 million for establishing this 15-member regulatory body. Its key role will be to develop a standardised licensing framework, set teaching standards, and ensure only professionally qualified teachers are in classrooms.
The move comes after Sindh became the first province last year to introduce a teaching licence test under its 2023 teaching licence policy to raise the quality of educators in schools.
— ALSO READ —
Pak Navy spearheads major deep-sea gas discovery with China
KP’s education sector has been facing serious challenges. In November last year, salaries of over 5,200 community-school teachers were delayed for eight months, disrupting the education of 276,000 students, mostly girls in remote areas.
This was followed by textbook shortages at the start of the new academic year, leaving schools without essential learning material.
More recently, 15 principals were suspended due to poor SSC exam results, highlighting issues in school leadership and monitoring.
The District Education Performance Index (DEPIx) Report 2020-23, released by the Planning Commission, placed Pakistan’s national average score at 53.46, categorising the country’s education performance as “low”.
Officials say the new licensing system will help address these issues and ensure better teaching standards in KP schools.
