Many children grow up full of wonder, asking questions like: Why is the sky blue? Why do we live on Earth and not on another planet? Does anybody live out there? What are stars, and why do they shine? These innocent yet profound questions are often met with silence or dismissed. However, if answered with care, they can ignite a lifelong curiosity. Sadly, in Pakistan, that spark is too often dimmed before it can grow. Science becomes something distant and difficult, disconnected from the child’s world, rather than a way to explore it.
My cousin Mihal, a curious primary schooler, once flipped through my space encyclopedia, his eyes lighting up at pictures of spacecraft, planets, and moons. His questions multiplied as he learned about constellations and stellar asterisms from me. During the recent planetary parade, excited after hearing about it in class, he tried spotting it in the sky but could not, so he came to me.
When I pointed it out, he stared in awe and asked, “What do I need to study to learn about these things?” I told him, “Physics—and more precisely, astronomy and astrophysics.” His excitement made me smile, but deep down, I felt a familiar heaviness. I knew the path he admired was full of hurdles here, especially for those who dream of studying the natural sciences in Pakistan. That spark of curiosity often meets discouragement at home and in society and, later, negligence at higher levels
But Mihal’s excitement is a sharp contrast to what most science students face across Pakistan. To dream of a scientifically aware society, we must first face the deep cracks in our system. While other countries nurture curiosity and critical thinking from the ground up, ours often shuts it down. Pseudoscience, conspiracy theories, and rote learning dominate—even our classrooms feed into it.
Science is rarely taught as a way to understand the world. It has reduced to dry definitions and recycled questions like “Write a note on…” or “List the types of…”—killing the joy and wonder at its core. The spark—the why and how—is missing entirely.
This approach weakens scientific understanding and also discourages students from seeing science as something relevant, engaging, or empowering. As a result, we often find students scoring above 90 percent yet unable to grasp the essence of the concepts they have memorized. This is not about capability—it is a failure of how we approach science in our schools. The system rewards rote learning and punishes curiosity. From its very foundation, the system is a blow to scientific thinking and rational discourse in Pakistan.
Another critical barrier is the language gap between students, textbooks, and educators. Scientific education is primarily delivered in English—a language many students struggle with and in which many teachers themselves are not fluent. This disconnect makes it difficult for students to internalize complex ideas, turning science subjects into a string of unfamiliar terms rather than a living, understandable subject. When science feels foreign and intimidating, it becomes something to fear.
Some of the classroom experiences I have personally witnessed—or heard about from others—are both shocking and disheartening. In one instance, an educator outright denied the moon landing, telling a class of 11th-grade students, “America can make great movies and has the absolute best editing staff in Hollywood. The moon landing is a pure piece of cinema distributed to the world to believe it.”
This is not an isolated case. Many teachers veer into pseudoscience, explaining paranormal entities through physics and suggesting ways to extract energy from spirits (Pakistan’s Pseudoscience Menace, n.d.).When authoritative figures in education present such narratives, students absorb misinformation as fact and begin to lose trust in scientific reasoning.
These statements might sound absurd, but they reveal a deeper issue: science is often misunderstood, misrepresented, or even ridiculed in classrooms. Instead of being treated as a tool to understand the universe, it’s reduced to guesswork, spectacle, or mysticism. This erodes the credibility of science in the eyes of young minds.
Authorities must urgently revise curricula and textbooks using clear, accessible English. Teachers need proper training, and science classrooms must foster objectivity. Students should be encouraged to ask questions and explore how and why the world works. To be fair, not all educators add to the problem—many are passionate and well-informed, striving to spark curiosity. But their efforts often get buried under systemic flaws and institutional neglect.
There must be an abundance of science outreach programs in schools and universities—open exhibitions, museums, and innovation festivals to ignite curiosity. International examples like the World Science Festival, Berlin Science Week, Deutsches Museum in Munich, and The Exploratorium in San Francisco show how interactive exhibits can engage audiences. Pakistan should also celebrate its scientific figures, not just in academic circles but through mainstream media, making their work accessible and relatable. Science must be promoted through public events, lectures, and discussions, not distorted by pseudoscientific narratives. Most crucially, a shift in the public mindset is needed; without it, the situation will remain stagnant or worsen.
Despite setbacks, Pakistan has passionate individuals working tirelessly to promote science, many doing so for free. Dr. Sabieh Anwar, through the Khwarizmi Science Society, organizes events like the Lahore Science Mela, leads engaging outreach programs, and makes his LUMS lectures open-source and freely available on YouTube. Quantum mechanics, famously elusive and counterintuitive, feels approachable and exciting in his hands. (Quantum Physics for Beginners – LUMSx, n.d.)
He also played a key role in establishing Single Photon Lab, Pakistan’s first quantum optics lab for teaching and research—an interdisciplinary space blending optics, data processing, and embedded systems to support hands-on learning in quantum science (Physlab’s Single Photon Quantum Mechanics and Quantum Information Lab – PhysLab, 2019).
Then there’s Dr. Pervez Hoodbhoy, whose lifelong commitment to academia, social activism, and scientific discourse, as exemplified through his platform The Black Hole, continues to spark critical conversations (“The Black Hole (Community Center),” 2024).
Mr. Adeel Imtiaz, through his YouTube channel Takhti, simplifies complex topics in Urdu for the layperson. Dr. Salman Hameed creates engaging astronomical content and insightful podcasts that encourage meaningful scientific discussions. He founded Kainaat Studios, where he produces astronomy videos for children as part of the “Kainaat Kids” project. These videos play a crucial role in fostering children’s interest in astronomy and are now being presented in schools across Punjab.
Dr. Jibran Rashid, a member of QWorld, has been teaching the basics of quantum computing and quantum programming to countless students, again, free of cost.
Dr. Qadeer Qureshi runs a Facebook group “Science ki Duniya”, where he answers questions and sparks conversations about science—all in Urdu. This is a Urdu speaking community of millions across Pakistan and abroad where science presents in a simple but powerful way. By using mother language, he’s helping science reach where it matters most.
I would also like to give due credit to Scientia Pakistan, the very platform where I am writing. It plays a crucial role in popularizing science by providing a space for individuals to share knowledge and spread scientific ideas. Through its written content and internships, Scientia offers opportunities for people to get involved in science communication and develop skills in science journalism, making a valuable contribution to science education in Pakistan.
While the world races ahead in developing new technologies, people like these are quietly working in the background, doing whatever they can to help others keep pace. Their efforts, though often overlooked, are rays of hope in a system that desperately needs reform. But we cannot rely on individuals alone. A widespread cultural shift is essential—one that values curiosity over conformity, reason over superstition, and education over rote.
Science must not remain confined to textbooks or elite institutions. It needs to spill into our homes, streets, media, and everyday conversations. Only then can we build a future where scientific thinking thrives and the next generation grows up not just memorizing facts but questioning boldly, wondering freely, and understanding deeply.
References:
- Pakistan’s pseudoscience menace. (n.d.). Retrieved April 5, 2025, from https://gulfnews.com/lifestyle/pakistans-pseudoscience-menace-1.1927430
- Physlab’s Single Photon Quantum Mechanics and Quantum Information Lab—PhysLab. (2019, September 20). https://physlab.org/qmlab/
- The Black Hole (community center). (2024). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Black_Hole_(community_center)&oldid=1215570453
- Muhammad Sabieh Anwar | Khwarizmi Science Society. (n.d.). Retrieved April 5, 2025, from https://khwarizmi.org/profile/muhammad-sabieh-anwar/
- Quantum Physics for Beginners—LUMSx. (n.d.). Retrieved April 5, 2025, from https://lumsx.lums.edu.pk/quantum-physics-for-beginners /
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Zoha Imran is an undergraduate physics student from Peshawar with a strong passion for quantum information sciences. Zoha is dedicated to making science more accessible through her writings. She dives deep into quantum mechanics and enjoys exploring new ideas. She loves reading and expanding her knowledge on a variety of subjects.”
