A huge milestone has been achieved in granting transgenders their rights in the country through Pakistan’s first ever transgender school.
The transgender population has always been discriminated against. The basic discrimination begins when we take them out of our schools and rid them of their basic right to education. In this regard, the government has certainly pushed barriers and worked on introducing a school solely for them. The opening branch of the school is being inaugurated on April 15. The school offers not just mainstream academic education but vocational training also.
The twelve years of education leading up to college will have a multitude of subjects being offered
This includes fashion designing, computer sciences, hair and styling courses, and graphic designing, etc. This is certainly a complete educational process, which not only focuses on mainstream schooling but also keeps in mind ways which can help build a stable future for these individuals.
Vocational training is a very important part of education and is certainly an idea which can be implemented in mainstream schooling in Pakistan. This will shift our focus from certain narrow career paths and will open windows of opportunities for those looking to go beyond the chosen professions in Pakistan.
The school is named The Gender Guardian and has been built with the help of an NGO called the Exploring Future Foundation
After the launch of the initial branch in Lahore, two more branches will open up in Karachi and Islamabad. The good thing about the launch is that almost around 40 aspiring students have registered themselves for the opening of the school. The opening will take place at an event in Alhamra at Gaddafi stadium.
It is going to be a task to materialize this project and ensure its smooth functioning. This is a huge step for Pakistan as a country and if this project succeeds, it will certainly show that a great deal can be expected from the people of this country.
Another great aspect of the school is that out of the 15 member faculty, 3 are from the transgender community itself
As a result, these faculty members will be able to explain ideas better to students while also being capable of understanding their mindset which will be able to drive the institution in the required direction.
For the longest time, the transgender community has been seeking empowerment in isolation
These initiatives combine the efforts of the transgender community with that of the rest of the community to ensure that empowerment does not come in isolation. The sensitization of the general public is extremely important and this is the first step towards it. The eventual goal should be to have them in regular schools with the education policy itself evolved to the point that it can accommodate every reality existing in the country.
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