About me

I am a teacher by profession with over 30 years of teaching and administrative experience at different levels.
I think I am a self-made man. I had topped all the candidates who appeared at the provincial public service commission in my subject in 2010.
I think nothing is impossible for a resolute man. Just keep on trying, never lose your heart and you will get to the place of your choice.
I believe the success and prosperity of Pakistanis lie in education, research, patience and moderation.

Contact me
On my email address
tahir_katlang@yahoo.com

I occasionally write features which are published by The News, Dawn, Business Recorder, Daily Times, some online magazines and my own website.

My areas of interest include politics, education, social and humanitarian issues and economy. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the focus of my interest. I have so far written over 1000 articles.

Here is some more information about me in the form of questions and answers between me and an academic.
Q: How old are you? How many children do you have? Does your wife work? What is your ‘ Zai’ as a pathan?

A: I am 46 years old, have five children two sons and three daughters. No she doesn’t work. I am Yousafzai Pathan.

Q: Tahir Sahib My intentions are to send you some books, because you like to read. For which I need your name , and your address since we are two honest educators who love books.

A:Tahir Ali Katlang. I have shifted from there some four years ago in search for a bright future at least for my children.

Q: If you are well read, it shall benefit you and your students. How did you get on this (great) track of reading extensively? It looks like you have a lot of confidence.

A: Thanks sir for your kind words. I would love to read them. As far as I can remember, I started reading when I was in class seven. It dates back to 1982. I would take books from my school library and would read them. I usually read storybooks then. Then After matriculation, in college too, I read books in English. I started reading news papers at the age of twelve. I also read several digests and would buy Suspense and Jasoosi especially besides others from my pocket money. I remember reading the FA and BA level books while I was in ten though I didn’t know they were for these upper classes. Then in 1989-90 I went through several books. And now I think it is there that I first developed a taste for classic reading, both for extensive and intensive study, books different from what I had read till then. And then I read and read.

Q: If you had Alla Din’s lamp what would you do to improve the lost of your co-workers, and students. How many students in the school?
A: Interesting question- that if I had Ala din’ lamp what would i have done for teachers and students. I think they have built their own world themselves and should not wait for someone else to come and push them to work better.

Q: I would say you work under terrible conditions, that are somewhat improving. What kind of newspapers, magazines or books do you read?
A: I have read a lot of books ranging from books on politics to history and from education to culture to religion to literature. I also read in the past many novels, short stories and various digests. I study both a few news papers in a day one or two Urdu while others in English which include Pakistani papers The News and dawn. I like books on education, religion, politics and economy the most. As education and training is my favourite subject, I also write for Dawn’ education page.
Q: What are the school hours? What time does the school start? What time does the school end? Do kids eat a snack – fruit of some kind, while they are in school. Here we serve full lunch to the kids. Lunch is free to the kids, who are below the poverty line – about $37,000, a year for a family of four.
A: We start at eight these days and the closure time is one pm. No they can only dream of having such luxuries here.
Q: Tell me something about your classes, what grade, how many students, how many times do you teach a day, how long are your periods, and describe the furniture of your classroom. Is it an all boys’ school?

A: I have taught all these classes during the 20+ years of my service. At present I teach the intermediate class. I like both the junior and senior classes.

There are usually 50 to 60 students in each class and the strength could increase depending upon the place where the school is located. During a training workshop for teachers, a teacher told me there were 120 students in his classes.
Most of the primary schools here don’t follow a period system to say the truth. The teachers go to their classes when and if they like. Most usually avoid going there and like to chat. My colleagues in school however are dutiful and avoid wasting too much of their time.
Where there are periods, they commonly are of 35 to forty minutes’ duration.

There is usually no furniture for boys and they sit on bare ground. There are no mats for them. There even were times when chairs for the teachers are also in shortage but now things have improved. Mind you this is about schools located in the city. The conditions of schools in rural areas can be gauged.
Q: Tell me about the conditions of toilets for your students, and toilets for the teachers, how many teachers in the school, and what the salary range of teachers is?

A: There were none both for teachers and students but now they have been built. But they have been poorly made and are nonoperational so far because the contractor and constructor has not visited the site for about an year now when it were left in the present state. They are locked at present and will do unless it is completed and handed over to the department. For the time being, teachers and students have to go in the fields outside the schools to relieve themselves.

There were six teachers in our primary school. And it is a lucky one in this connection. There are somewhere two teachers, even one in some, teach hundreds of students. Now I work at higher secondary schools where there are over 20 teachers.
They are mainly in the profession not by their deliberate choice but by chance- because they could not find another job, they opted for it. Teachers are paid low. A primary teacher’s take home salary starts from Rs.5000 and may go upto 20000 at the maximum in which it is very hard for them to even feed their families. It was much low till recently however during the last few years, it has been raised.