School digital system fails to take off in Sindh

The Sindh School Education Department’s newly-introduced digital system has faced major difficulties in its first phase, creating problems in teachers’ facial attendance, appointments, and transfer procedures, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Monday.

The digital system, developed by the IT section of the School Education Department, has failed to become fully functional as planned. The department had introduced a face-recognition-based attendance system for teachers, which was scheduled to start from August 1. 

However, the implementation has been halted as thousands of teachers could not complete their digital registration.

More than 10,000 teachers have reportedly been unable to complete the registration process required for biometric facial recognition attendance, causing delays in the launch of the new attendance mechanism.

The e-portal system introduced for teacher appointments and transfers has also faced setbacks. The initial phase of transfers and postings carried out through the portal has become controversial, with more than 2,000 teachers’ appointment and transfer orders coming under scrutiny.

During the transfer process, Hyderabad city was declared a “red zone,” meaning postings in the area were expected to be restricted. However, a large number of teachers were still assigned to schools in Hyderabad, raising questions over the implementation of the transfer policy.

The issues with the digital system have surprised officials of the Ministry of Education as well as senior officers of the School Education Department. The problems have also created uncertainty among officials of the IT section responsible for managing the system.

The second phase of teacher appointments and transfers through the e-portal has now also been delayed due to technical issues. The Human Resources (HR) wing of the School Education Department has been affected by the problems linked to the digital platform.

Officials said that the department should identify those responsible for the difficulties and take steps to improve the system. They added that the IT section introduced the e-portal to reduce additional government expenses and make the transfer and appointment process more transparent.

IT officials further stated that all teacher appointments and transfers were processed through the online system and that improvements are possible because technical problems often occur when a new system is launched.

Teacher organizations have also urged the department to resolve the issues, saying that every new initiative faces challenges in its early stages and that efforts should be made to improve the system instead of abandoning it.

Reporter: Azad Nahrio