Chapter 14: Pakistan

Ayesha and Farooq are parents of two boys and a girl. All three children attended a suburban public elementary school, but middle school presented problems. Middle school years coincide with the onset of puberty and adolescence. At and after this time, male-female intermingling becomes a major concern. To address this concern in the public-school setting, the parents asked their children to observe purdah (veiling). Although this caused some level of discomfort for the boys (shorts were not allowed, even for sports); the practice was more invasive for their daughter; who had to wear a head scarf, long tunics over pants and long-sleeve blouses. Their daughter expressed displeasure at having to dress differently from everybody else and objected to being separated from friends of the opposite sex. Ayesha and Farooq also wanted their children to observe the practice of daily prayers. As the timings of the prayers coincided with the school day, Ayesha had arranged with the school principal to have a room set up in school for their children to use. However, the children resisted leaving their classrooms to use this facility. Eventually, Ayesha and Farooq made the difficult decision of placing their children in a private Muslim school where a school uniform, segregation of sexes, and communal prayers resolved all religious and cultural requirements. Unfortunately, private school was expensive and provided only limited curricular opportunities as compared to local public schools. Further, as their boys approached their high school years, the parents began to worry about the academic and professional future of their sons: how would the boys successfully compete with others in the world job market without access to a more rigorous curriculum? To address this issue, they placed their boys back into public school, but kept their daughter in the private school.