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You would probably be familiar of feudalism. It is a dominant social system, in which lands are owned by nobles while peasants are compelled to live on their lords’ lands and give them ‘honor’ and provide ‘labour’. Science is no piece of land, still feudalism in science has been started in Pakistani universities last two decades. The professors seem to be on a sole mission of publishing research papers, which are actually research-less papers if truth be told, as research is nonexistent in such massive publications.
I recall and my class fellows will confirm it that a distinguished national professor once instructed us to rote his lecture during our M. Phil class in physics department, Quaid-e-Azam University (QAU). On my inquiry, a friend told me that he was one of notable scientists of Pakistan. I hid a cry in my soul and managed to pass that subject by just memorizing his lectures. When I googled about the very professor, I found a huge number of research papers in his credit, as well as found that he had earned doctorate degrees for many students. On the other hand, he was unable to teach physics in class.
Likewise, another teacher used to teach old aged notes of the time when he was a student himself. Mysteriously, he too has published a clusters of research papers. Similarly, meet another professor, a special case, who’s not capable of expressing his knowledge, who vomits selected text on the whiteboard with illogical examples. Moreover, he develops a fear-based relation with students. That very professor is famous among students for giving tough time in exam, but to me he’s just a “Creativity Killer” for students. Spending more time in labs, our jealous professors devote themselves over so called research, but do little to none to encourage creative atmosphere.
To whom one may put the responsibility of seeding feudalism in Sciences?
I expressed my disappointment in an email exchange with Dr. Pervez Hoodbhoy, a genuine physicist, activist, and an occasional Friday speaker at QAU, who has been fighting all alone to improve things and has been highlighting these flaws in education, especially higher education level since long. He has no official position now there in QAU, however he suggested that students need to organize themselves for their rights. But the fact remains How can students in Pakistan dare to say a word against the so-called feudals of science? Rather, they must pay homage to them and act like mere labourers in the class and laboratories, as per the system’s demands..
To whom one may put the responsibility of seeding feudalism in Sciences? Well, Higher Education commission (HEC) in an attempt to encourage research field in Pakistan introduced shortsighted policies, and focused on promotions, increasing salaries, perks and so on as an incentive for higher number of publications. While recommending a teacher or field specialist in any field for university, the HEC neither certified teaching and knowledge transfer abilities on that time, nor have any check during the whole rest of academic life of that very professor. It seems like the only scale is numbers of papers.
The reality of feudalism in science gets further highlighted when one observes the publication lists of any of professors. For instance: one professor has citation of 94,374 times, with huge publications. Further examination reveals that all his papers are published in collaboration with foreign professors who have put his name in every research paper and doing so have made him a highly cited hero of Pakistan. That very professor has no influential skills to explore the students’ dormant skills and never produced even a single mathematician, whom the Pakistani nation would feel proud.
A closer look discloses that Pakistani universities are introducing a culture of pseudoscience. This is one of many causes why our science has no industrial connection at national level. Internationally, our universities ranking keep dropping down in QS and Time Higher Education world ranking every year.
The new government, headed by Imran Khan, must focus on the accountability of these so-called science lords, just as he has raised his voice against the political feudals and elites and stood against corruption. Otherwise, the former will demolish the bright minds of nation and such science’s feudalism will bring further darkness in the field.
The writer, Irfan Khan, is a Researcher of Natural Sciences at Physics Department, Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan. He can be reached at ik8828903@gmail.com
Nice article. No doubt, government should take steps to make improvements in the field of science