LAHORE: In an innovative move, the Punjab School Education Department has introduced new subject groups for the matriculation exams, giving students more options beyond the traditional streams of science and arts.
Punjab School Education Secretary Khalid Naeem Wattoo announced that students can now opt for subjects like health sciences, agriculture, information technology (IT) and entrepreneurship.
This initiative marks the first time in 70 years that Pakistan’s education system has undergone such significant reform. The new groups aim to align the curriculum with international standards and offer students more practical and career-oriented options.
“We have introduced four new groups: agriculture, computer science, fashion design and health sciences. Students will be taught practically, with 30 marks allocated for theory and 40 marks for practicals,” Wattoo said. Geographic news on Tuesday.
The introduction of these new groups will not require the hiring of additional teachers, he said. Instead, existing teachers will be trained to adapt to the modern curriculum.
“We have teachers who are engineers and there are already computer science teachers. We will train our current staff to meet the demands of these new subjects,” Wattoo explained.
The total marks for the matriculation examinations will remain at 1,100, with the new subjects being integrated into the existing framework.
Students will select their subject groups at the beginning of ninth grade, allowing them to focus on their chosen fields throughout their secondary education.
