Private schools in Sindh won’t be forced into a six-day school week after all. The province’s Education and Literacy Department clarified on Friday that private institutions can set their own weekly schedules based on what works for them.
The clarification came after confusion spread over a July 29 notification, which had stated that public and private schools under the department would move to a Monday-to-Saturday week starting August 1, until further notice.
That notification led many private school administrators to believe Saturday classes were now mandatory. The new circular, issued by the Directorate of Inspection and Registration of Private Institutions, says otherwise.
“It is hereby clarified for all privately managed schools across the province of Sindh that they may manage their weekly working days according to their own schedules and operative convenience,” said Additional Director Registration Rafia Javed.
The confusion traces back further than this week. On March 31, the Sindh government had made Saturdays and Sundays holidays at educational institutions, framed as an austerity and fuel-conservation measure tied to the economic fallout from the US-Israeli war on Iran.
According to a spokesperson for the Sindh chief minister, that March order was meant to apply to students only. Teachers ended up treating it as a full off day too, which slowed down how much of the academic syllabus schools could actually finish.
To make up for lost time, the government later reinstated the six-day week, which is what triggered the July 29 notification in the first place. The College Education Department issued a similar directive for public and private colleges under its authority.
Private schools now have clarity: they’re free to keep their own weekly schedule, whether that includes Saturday classes or not, as the new circular from Sindh’s Education Department makes clear.
