AI to check school attendance in KPK

In response to persistent complaints that teachers are absent in public schools, a camera-based attendance device based on artificial intelligence has been installed in government schools.

According to the Express Tribune, the managing director of the Elementary Schools Education Foundation (ESEF), Zariful Mani, said in a statement here on Sunday that AI-based camera attendance devices would improve the quality of education and student performance.

It was developed by ESEF's e-governance cell to ensure transparency, quality, and easy transfer of scholarship amounts to partners.

A previous program went awry due to mismanagement, but the whole team turned it around.

For the first time in the country's history, the system was installed in schools.

It would also enable teachers to attend classes and prevent dropouts by starting classes on time.

As per the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) survey of 2021, there were approximately 22.8 million out-of-school children (OSC) in the country, including 4.7 million in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

According to the survey, there were 2.9 million girls in the OSC, of which one million lived in merged tribal districts.

A similar percentage of girls and boys in the province are out of school, with 74.4% and 38.5%, respectively.

The BISP has started Education Scholarship programs in an effort to motivate parents to enroll their children and discourage dropouts in light of the high ratio of OSC in the country, including in K-P.

Each primary school student received 1,500 rupees per three months, 2,500 rupees at the secondary level, and 3,000 rupees at the higher secondary level as part of the BISP. At the higher secondary level, the amount was 3,500 rupees per boy and 4,000 rupees per girl.

A total of 9.4 million children have been enrolled and Rs40 billion has been disbursed through BISP's Education Scholarship program since its inception. A project worth Rs3.7 billion has been planned by Syed Shahab Khan, Senior Planning Officer, Education Department.