Discuss Globalization and its Effects on Pakistan's Education System | Fahad Farooq

Outline
1-Introduction

2-Understanding the term Globalization

3-What are the positive effects of globalization on Pakistan’s education system?

 ✓Increased awareness about importance of education

o Evidence: Students have realized the real importance of education to remain in competition in
today’s globalised world.
 ✓Modernization of education
o Evidence: Collaboration of educationalists and policy makers across the world has been
improving the education standards in Pakistan.
 ✓Improved learning and teaching skills
o Evidence: Globalization has provided rich material for teaching and learning by high information
technology.
 ✓Enhancing the access of intellectuals to global market
o Evidence: Globalization has increased the participation of Pakistani intellectuals in the global
market.

4-What are the negative effects of globalization on Pakistan’s education system?

 ✓Increasing brain drain

o Evidence: Educated people are moving to developed states for better jobs and higher
opportunities.
 ✓Popularity of English and devaluation of local languages
o Evidence: Most of the knowledge is available in the English language; therefore, English has
become more popular than the local languages.
 ✓Rising imperialism of private institutions
o Evidence: The competition between public and private institutes for providing better human
capital to the market has resulted in the hegemony of the private institutes.
 ✓Propagation of western ideologies, secular culture
o Evidence: The inculcation of western education standards in the curriculum is resulting into the
propagation of secular culture and capitalist ideologies in the country.

5-What are the suggestions to reduce the negative impacts?

 ✓To make effective policies to protect the local culture and languages while following the
international education standards
 ✓To offer jobs and handsome salaries to the educated people to reduce brain drain
 ✓To formulate governing bodies to control the imperialism of the private institutes
6-Critical Analysis

7-Conclusion

Answer to the Question

Introduction
Globalization, a phenomenon in which local happenings are influenced by the
international events and vice versa, has affected positively as well as negatively the education system of
Pakistan. As, under the process of globalization the whole world has turned into a global village, the
concept of international borders has lost its importance. Now the inventions being introduced in one
corner of the world are affecting the population of the other corner of the world, simultaneously. The
developed nations have achieved marvelous advancements in all fields because of their prolonged work
in science and technology. However, the developing states, like Pakistan, are struggling to achieve the
same with their scarce resources. The biggest impact of globalization is that the students in Pakistan
have realized the importance of education. They know that without acquiring the modern education,
they cannot compete in today’s globalised world. Moreover, the policy makers of education in Pakistan
have started modernizing the curriculum and education standards according to the western education
system. In addition, the teaching and learning techniques of teachers and students have also been
improved by the induction of advanced computer assisted techniques and information technology. On
the other hand, globalization has some negative impacts also. Globalization has turned the educational
institutes from knowledge provider sources to human resource providers for the global market. This has
created a competition among the educational institutes; thus, leading to the hegemony of private
institutions. In addition, the inculcation of western education standards in the curriculum has been
demolishing the local moral and cultural values among the students. To mitigate these challenges, the
educationalists and the policy makers should manage, not oppose, the incoming advancements in the
field of education while designing the educational curriculum keeping in view the national priorities.
Government should formulate governing bodies to control the imperialism of the private institutes. To
survive in this globalised world, the solution of these challenges is the need of hour. This essay explores
the effects of globalization on the education system of Pakistan and the measures to mitigate its
negative impacts.

Understanding the term Globalization

The term globalization refers to the transformation of the whole world into a global village as a result of
increased advancements, especially in the field of information technology. Now, people living in the one
corner of the world are aware of the events happening in the other corner of the world due to media,
internet, and other resources. The concept of international borders has little importance in today’s
global world. People, while sitting in their homes, can now have success to the international markets
with the help of information technology. They can buy and use the things of foreign brands that are not
readily available in their home countries. Thus, the phenomenon of globalization has been
revolutionizing people, their lifestyles, and businesses across the globe.
As, globalization has affected all the spheres of life, including social, industrial, and agriculture sectors.
With no exception, globalization has affected the education sector of developing countries, like Pakistan.
Where it has brought about positive changes in education sector of Pakistan, it has also some bad
impacts on the education sector.

Positive impacts of globalization on Pakistan’s education system

Increased awareness about importance of education
The most prominent impact of globalization is awareness about the importance of education
created among the students. They have realized that education is the basic pillar upon which an
individual’s as well as country’s development stands in today’s modern world. Without acquiring
modern education, they cannot compete with developed nations in the global market. Social media and
other digital revolutions have revealed them that if they want to earn some prestige in the world, they
have to get modern education.

Modernization of education
Globalization has modernized the education system of all the countries after the advent of various
technologies. Pakistan has also included various latest topics in the curriculum to prepare the students
for the global market. Scientific subjects and rational approach have been replacing the traditional
education system. Collaboration of educationalists and policy makers across the world has been
improving the education standards in Pakistan. Now, the students passing out from the universities of
Pakistan are well equipped with the latest knowledge, and they are joining the international
corporations and research organizations.

Improved learning and teaching skills

Globalization has provided rich material for teaching and learning by high information technology.
Teachers are improving their teaching skills by joining various conferences in the country. Moreover,
they can travel foreign countries to attend training programs in order to nurture their teaching skills.
Similarly, students are getting help from online resources while sitting in their homes. The students have
free access to online video lectures and research websites. They are getting help from computer assisted
techniques in their work. Furthermore, they are connected with the latest advancements in their
respective fields occurring in the developed countries. People ,now, have no problem in sending their
children abroad for higher education because they can remain in touch with them with the help of
advanced technology.

Enhancing the access of intellectuals to global market

Since, globalization has raised the technical skills of students, teachers, and researchers in Pakistan by
transferring latest skills and knowledge. Pakistan is further trying to improve its education system to
provide best human resources to the international market. The global market requires competitive and
innovative professionals; therefore, Pakistan’s government has been providing scholarships and best
facilities to the students of higher education. These students and intellectuals working abroad have been
improving the global image of Pakistan. They are not only helping the country economically but they are
also participating in improving the education standards in Pakistan.
Negative impacts of globalization on Pakistan’s education system
Where globalization has benefitted the education system of Pakistan, there it has also some negative
impacts on the education system as follows.

Increasing brain drain

Indeed, globalization has modernized and improved the education system of Pakistan up to the
international standards. But, the issue is that Pakistani students, professionals, and intellectuals have
been moving to the developed states for better opportunities. Government has been spending a huge
amount in their scholarships for higher education, but they settle abroad after acquiring the desired
skills and do not return to Pakistan. Thus, Pakistan has not only suffered the loss of valuable and skilled
persons but also have to bear the expenses of training and evaluation of new ones.

Popularity of English and devaluation of local languages

Since, most of the modern knowledge is available in the English language. People pay more attention to
the English language as compared to the regional languages so that they can better use the latest
technologies to get the benefit of them. The English language has proved to be a source of prosperity
and development as all the technologies and inventions developing across the world are mostly
available in this language. People in developing countries, like Pakistan, feel honor and prestige to speak
in the English language publically. Most of them, therefore, are weak in their mother languages, and
they speak a mixture of languages while giving preference to the English language. In this way, the local
and regional languages become vulnerable before the English language.

Rising imperialism of private institutions

Globalization has turned the educational institutes from knowledge provider sources to human resource
providers for the global market. This has created a competition among the educational institutes; thus,
leading to the hegemony of private institutions. In addition to the local private educationalists, foreign
educationalists have also laid their foundations in Pakistan in the form of various branches of their
institutes. Thus, private sector has turned into a high profit earning sector. Students pay high fee to
these educational institutes in order to gain the knowledge of international standard. Government has
still failed to regularize these private institutions, and force them to provide the knowledge of
international standard with low fee.

Propagation of western ideologies, secular culture

The inculcation of western education standards in the curriculum is resulting into the propagation of
secular culture and capitalist ideologies in the country. In order to meet the requirements of global
market, Pakistan has updated its curriculum according to the pattern of western countries. Moreover,
different international organizations, like UNO, IMF, and World bank, that support and fund the
educational institutes in Pakistan, impose and propagate their ideologies in the country. As a result,
secular culture has been prevailing in the country, especially in the urban areas. Our religious and
cultural values are at the stake of these western ideologies. The western education system has been
distancing the students from the religion as well as the eastern culture.
Suggestions to reduce the negative impacts
No doubt, globalization has strongly impacted the Pakistan’s education system, but it’s all impacts are
not positive. There is a dire need to minimize the negative impacts of globalization. For this purpose,
government should include the English language and western style of education in such a way that the
local languages and the local culture must not be ruined. The policy makers should design the
curriculum in a manner that national interests and ideologies must remain dominant over the western
ideologies. Moreover, higher education commission should control the brain drain by making strict
policies. It should be made compulsory for the outgoing students and intellectuals for research and
higher education to come back to Pakistan after the completion of their study or research work. In order
to attract the professionals, government should offer them handsome salaries and facilities of
international standard. Last but not least, government should make governing bodies to control the
activities of private institutions. The expenses of education in private institutes should be bearable for
poor students so that they can also get the education of international standard.

Critical Analysis
In today’s globalised world, the education system of Pakistan has been meeting the international
standards by adopting the latest technologies and updated curriculum. The traditional way of teaching
and learning is on a continuous decline. Teachers and students, now, can use various global resources
for information and knowledge while sitting in their homes. Looking on the other side of the coin,
globalization has also created some challenges for the education system of Pakistan. Western culture
and ideologies have dominated over the local culture and traditions. People have started feeling shame
in adopting the local values and honor in practicing the liberal values. However, the educationalists and
the policy makers have noticed all the shortcomings, and they are, fully, determined to mitigate the
negative impacts of globalization.

Conclusion
To conclude, globalization has brought significant developments in all the fields- such as economic,
social, and education- all across the world. Under the process of globalization, technologies, people, and
other things move from one place to the other without taking into account the concept of borders and
other limitations. In fact, globalization has lasted positive as well as negative impacts on the education
system of developing countries, especially Pakistan. The positive impacts, Pakistan has been enjoying,
are the rising awareness in the students, modernization of education as per international standards,
improvement in the skills of teachers and students, and the access of local researchers in the global
market. On the other hand, globalization has imparted some negative impacts, also. For instance, the
migration of local brains towards the developed states, devaluation of local culture and languages, the
rising imperialism of the private institutes, and the propagation of western ideologies in the country are
some bad impacts. Now, government should take immediate measures to minimize the negative
impacts; otherwise, education sector would suffer more in future. To control the brain drain, higher
education department should reshape the policies for outgoing students. In addition, public and private
educational institutes should be provided equal resources and same curriculum to eradicate the rising
class division in the society. The policy makers should design the curriculum in such a way that the
national interest and culture must not be compromised for the foreign culture and ideologies.