LAHORE: In a revolutionary move, the Punjab School Education Department has introduced new subject groups for final year examinations, providing students with expanded choices beyond traditional science and arts streams.
Punjab School Education Secretary Khalid Naeem Wattoo announced that students can now opt for subjects such as health sciences, agriculture, information technology (IT) and entrepreneurship .
The initiative marks the first time in 70 years that Pakistan’s education system has undergone such a major overhaul. The new groups aim to align the curriculum with international standards and provide students with more practical and career-oriented options.
“We have introduced four new groups: agriculture, computer science, fashion design and health sciences. Students will receive practical teaching, with 30 points allocated for theory and 40 points for practical work,” Wattoo said. PK Press Club News Tuesday.
The introduction of these new groups will not require the recruitment of additional teachers, he clarified. Instead, existing teachers will be trained to adapt to the modern curriculum.
“We have engineering teachers and computer science teachers are already in place. We will train our current staff to meet the requirements of these new subjects,” Wattoo explained.
The total final exam marks will remain at 1,100 as the new subjects are integrated into the existing framework.
Students will select their subject groups at the start of Year 9, allowing them to focus on their chosen areas throughout their secondary education.
