Parent’s Perception about Newly Established ECE Room in Dera Ghazi Khan District

Abstract

This study examined the role of Early Childhood Education (ECE) rooms in shaping about parental perceptions, enrolment, and retention of students in the D.G. Khan district of Southern Punjab. Also with a specific focus on government public schools of only D G Khan district within its three tehsils DG Khan, Taunsa and Kot Chutta. Pakistan faces a critical educational challenge with approximately 20 million children out of school and nearly half of its population illiterate. Southern Punjab, particularly D.G. Khan, reflects this crisis with a high prevalence of out-of-school children and primary-level dropouts. Initiatives such as “Parho Punjab Barho Punjab” and “Miari School Sarkari School” aim to address these concerns through improved early education. A quantitative research design was employed with survey research method. Data were collected from four tehsils ECE school students parent through strata sampling technique. A structured questionnaires distributed among parents of ECE students, and responses were analyzed to assess enrolment, retention, and dropout trends. The findings indicate that ECE rooms positively transformed parents’ attitudes toward schooling, contributing to increased enrolment and higher student retention rates. Moreover, these interventions significantly reduced dropout at the primary level while enhancing community trust in public schools. Scaling up ECE facilities across government schools, coupled with community mobilization and alignment with Education for All (EFA) targets, is recommended to ensure sustainable enrolment and retention outcomes.