ROTE MEMORIZATION IN PAKISTAN: HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ PERSPECTIVES AND CHALLENGES

Abstract

Rote memorization is the dominant mode of academic preparation in Pakistan, yet the lived experiences of the students who navigate it remain largely absent from the research literature. This study explored how high school students at the matriculation and intermediate levels perceive and experience rote memorization, and what challenges their reliance on it creates for understanding, motivation and well-being. A qualitative design was adopted: semi-structured, bilingual (Urdu–English) interviews were conducted with six purposively selected students from Lahore, Gujranwala and Okara, and the data were analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s six-phase thematic analysis. Six master themes emerged: perceptions of rote versus conceptual understanding; motivational and engagement dynamics; learning strategies and academic self-regulation; psychological and emotional impact; impact on creativity and critical thinking; and the role of teachers, environment and system. Students universally framed rote learning as a short-term survival tool rather than genuine knowledge, reported stress, anxiety and boredom, and described creativity and critical thinking as casualties of an exam-driven system. The findings indicate that meaningful reform must extend beyond classroom pedagogy to the examination structures that make rote memorization rational and necessary.