FPSC SST 2025 Solved Paper

Correct answer: Planning. Planning is the function that sets goals and decides how to achieve them.

• Organizing: Organizing arranges resources and structure to achieve goals already set.
• Controlling: Controlling monitors results against the goals.
• Leading: Leading motivates and guides people.

Correct answer: Improved decision making. An MIS collects and organizes accurate data so managers can make better-informed decisions.

• More funding: An MIS does not itself generate funding.
• Less admin work: Reducing administrative work may be a side benefit, but it is not the primary purpose.
• Student engagement: Student engagement is a teaching concern, not the main purpose of an MIS.

Correct answer: Social learning. Bandura’s social learning theory explains that people learn by observing and imitating the behaviour of others.

• Classical conditioning: Classical conditioning is learning by association between stimuli (Pavlov).
• Operant conditioning: Operant conditioning is learning through consequences such as reinforcement and punishment (Skinner).
• Cognitive learning: Cognitive learning is a broad term for mental processes and is not the specific term for learning by observation.

Correct answer: Thorndike. Edward Thorndike proposed the Law of Effect: responses followed by satisfying consequences are strengthened.

• Skinner: Skinner developed operant conditioning, building on Thorndike’s idea.
• Pavlov: Pavlov is known for classical conditioning.
• Watson: Watson is known for founding behaviourism.

Correct answer: Albert Bandura. Albert Bandura introduced self-efficacy, a person’s belief in their ability to succeed at a task.

• Vygotsky: Vygotsky is known for sociocultural theory and the zone of proximal development.
• Piaget: Piaget is known for his stages of cognitive development.
• Skinner: Skinner is known for operant conditioning.

Correct answer: Building relationships. Effective administration relies on trust, cooperation, and good working relationships with staff, students, and the community.

• Autocratic decisions: Autocratic decisions ignore stakeholders’ views and reduce cooperation.
• Poor communication: Poor communication causes confusion and weakens trust.
• Random feedback: Random feedback is unplanned and does not support improvement.

Correct answer: Giving input and feedback. Teachers know learners and classrooms best, so they contribute by giving input on content and methods and feedback on what works.

• Managing resources: Managing resources is an administrative role, not the main curriculum contribution.
• Teaching classes: Teaching classes is implementation of the curriculum, not development.
• Evaluating performance: Evaluating performance is a general assessment task and not the teacher’s main contribution to development.

Correct answer: Planning for unexpected events. Contingency planning prepares alternative courses of action for unexpected events or emergencies.

• Fixed planning: Fixed planning is rigid and does not allow for change.
• Ignoring risks: Ignoring risks is the opposite of contingency planning.
• Financial planning only: Financial planning is only one area of planning and is not what the term means.

Correct answer: Citizens and Educators. In a democratic view, school policy is shaped jointly by the community (citizens) and educators, combining public needs with professional expertise.

• Headmaster: Leaving policy to the headmaster alone is autocratic and ignores the community.
• Citizens: Citizens alone lack professional educational expertise.
• Professional Educationist: Professional educationists alone would exclude community needs and views.

Correct answer: 5. Fayol described five elements of management: planning, organizing, commanding, coordinating, and controlling.

• 4: Four is fewer than Fayol’s five elements.
• 6: Six is more than Fayol’s five elements.
• 7: Seven is the number of functions in Gulick’s POSDCORB, not Fayol’s list.

Correct answer: Flexibility in decision making. Effective leaders adapt their decisions to changing situations and people.

• Avoiding risks: Avoiding risks prevents growth and innovation.
• Rigidity: Rigidity prevents adapting to change.
• Micromanaging: Micromanaging reduces trust and teamwork.

Correct answer: Over. “Over” suits movement across and above an area, which fits a plane flying across the fields.

• On: “On” means in contact with a surface, which a flying plane is not.
• Above: “Above” describes a higher position but does not express movement across the fields as naturally as “over”.
• At: “At” indicates a point or position, not movement across an area.

Correct answer: Past perfect conditional. “Could have applied” is a modal verb with a perfect infinitive, the past (perfect) conditional form used for unreal past possibilities.

• Simple present: Simple present does not appear anywhere in the sentence.
• Past perfect: Past perfect would need “had applied”, but the main clause uses “could have applied”.
• Simple past: Simple past appears only in the if-clause (“had a degree”), not in the main clause.

Correct answer: to. The phrasal verb “look forward” is always followed by “to”.

• at: “Look at” has a different meaning (to direct your eyes toward).
• for: “Look for” means to search for, not to anticipate.
• with: “With” does not combine with “look forward”.

Correct answer: Trained teachers. The conference identified the shortage of trained teachers, especially at the primary level, as the main constraint on the national plan of educational development.

• Investment: Funding was a concern but was not named as the main hurdle.
• School buildings: Buildings were a concern but not the main hurdle highlighted.
• Books: Textbooks were a concern but not the main hurdle highlighted.

Correct answer: 26.2 million. The Pakistan Institute of Education’s Pakistan Education Statistics 2021–22 reported about 26.2 million out-of-school children, around 39% of school-age children.

• 25.2 million: 25.2 million is not the figure reported in this publication.
• 20.2 million: 20.2 million understates the reported figure.
• 1.8 million: 1.8 million is far below the reported figure.

Correct answer: 5–16 years. Article 25-A, added by the 18th Amendment (2010), obliges the state to provide free and compulsory education to children aged 5 to 16.

• 3–18 years: 3–18 years is wider than the constitutional range.
• 4–17 years: 4–17 years does not match the 5–16 range.
• 6–17 years: 6–17 years starts too late and ends too late.

Correct answer: Egregious. Egregious means outrageously bad or shocking, which explains why the remarks alienated attendees.

• Felicitous: Felicitous means well-chosen and appropriate, which would not alienate people.
• Decorous: Decorous means polite and proper, the opposite of alienating.
• Commendable: Commendable means praiseworthy, so it does not fit remarks that upset the audience.

Correct answer: Compound. The sentence joins two independent clauses with the coordinating conjunction “yet”, which makes it a compound sentence.

• Simple: A simple sentence has only one independent clause, but this one has two.
• Complex: A complex sentence needs a dependent clause, but both clauses here can stand alone.
• Compound-Complex: A compound-complex sentence needs two independent clauses and at least one dependent clause, and there is no dependent clause here.

Correct answer: The carpets that you bought last year have rotted. “That you bought last year” is a dependent clause that modifies the noun “carpets”, so it is an adjective (relative) clause.

• My brother totally loves cricket: This sentence has only a main clause with an adverb (“totally”) and no dependent clause.
• Please put those boxes under the table: This is a simple command with no clause modifying a noun.
• My brother gave me a bat: This is a simple sentence with no dependent clause.

Correct answer: My brother, who lives in Islamabad, is a doctor. “Who lives in Islamabad” is set off by commas and only adds extra information about “my brother”, so it is non-defining.

• The city where I was born is small: “Where I was born” is a defining clause that identifies which city is meant.
• The book that you lent me is great: “That you lent me” is a defining clause that identifies which book is meant.
• The woman who called you is outside: “Who called you” is a defining clause that identifies which woman is meant.

Correct answer: Barked the dog loudly. An inverted sentence places the verb before the subject; here the verb “barked” comes before “the dog”.

• The loudly dog barked: This keeps the subject before the verb, and the adverb is misplaced.
• The dog barked loudly: This follows normal subject–verb–adverb order.
• The dog loudly barked: This follows normal subject–adverb–verb order.

Correct answer: Fortune. Serendipity means a fortunate discovery or happy accident made by chance, and fortune (in the sense of good luck) comes closest.

• Misadventure: Misadventure means an unlucky accident, the opposite of a happy chance.
• Calamity: Calamity means a disaster, which is a negative event.
• Providence: Providence refers to divine care or foresight, not chance good luck.