Education Reform Overhaul: A Roadmap Suited to Nepal’s Capacity and Needs
Standing on practical ground that serves the broader public interest and is financially bearable for the nation, we present here some structural reform measures that must be implemented immediately in Nepal’s education sector.
On the eve of the upcoming House of Representatives election, we expect these agendas will be debated deeply among relevant political parties, candidates, and aware voters.
Guaranteeing constitutional rights and ending discrimination
Article 31 of Nepal’s Constitution 2072 guarantees every citizen the right to access basic education and makes it free and compulsory. It is now time to move beyond keeping this spirit confined to paper and to provide every child an “equal-level” basic education, including a detailed curriculum, physical facilities, and residential arrangements where required.
At present, Nepal clearly has four tiers of discriminatory education systems (international/elite, middle-class, public/government, and marginalized). The root causes are economic inequality, weak regulation, and unequal distribution of state resources. The divide in educational inequality begins here. Until this foundational inequality is addressed, no matter what investments or interventions are made later, our future leaders cannot be brought to an equal standing.
Therefore, all schools in the country should have the same type of curriculum, the same medium of instruction, and teaching delivered by teachers with the same qualifications. To make children from poor, helpless, and marginalized groups competitive on par with students from well-off groups, there should be a legal provision requiring the concerned local level to provide free residential facilities.
Language policy, skills development, and workforce management
In our society, a flawed mindset still prevails that equates being educated with “being able to recognize letters” and “speaking English fluently.” This is why our education system has not become skills-oriented. On one hand, 22.7 percent of youths who have completed secondary education are unemployed (National Planning Commission, Labour Force Survey 2078). On the other hand, there is a major shortage of mid-level technical manpower required to keep our daily life and economy functioning. The heavy presence of foreign manpower—from plumbing and wiring to hairdressing and construction work (Nepal Rastra Bank, 2021)—is a matter of shame.
To address this, a clear language policy is necessary. Up to Grade 3, the medium of instruction should be the “mother tongue,” and from Grades 4 to 12, “Nepali language” should be the medium of instruction, while English should be taught as a compulsory subject. Protecting 124 mother tongues and 21 endangered indigenous languages is a mandatory responsibility of the state. Also, learning from Singapore’s experience, strengthening Nepali as a language of national unity and communication is essential.
Secondary education should be made fully free, and students should be attracted towards vocational education. The purpose of such education is to produce mid-level manpower capable of self-employment. Students who receive free vocational education through state investment should be required to serve in the relevant sector within the country for at least 10 years after completing their studies. If they do not serve or attempt to migrate abroad, a strict policy should be adopted to recover the investment with interest.
“Nearby schools” and reducing the national financial burden
It is estimated that the country spends around NPR one hundred billion annually on educational transportation alone because students do not receive quality education within walking distance from their residential area, or because they travel to distant schools under the influence of private school advertising. This amount could be spent on improving education quality. If students spend the time they currently spend in vehicles on walking instead, their health also becomes stronger.
Therefore, a “zoning” system should be implemented, requiring basic-level education to be taken and provided in a school within the same ward where the guardian resides. In urban areas, operating school buses should be discouraged. However, for students with special needs or those who require residential facilities, arrangements should be made in a designated school within the local level.
Moral education and safeguarding originality
To address changes in domestic conditions arising from the impact of globalization, and to emotionally connect all Nepalis, “moral education” should be made compulsory in Grades 4 and 5. Up to the secondary level, Nepal’s history, literature, philosophy, and traditional knowledge should be made an integral part of the curriculum, so that students develop self-respect and a sense of pride in their culture.
Inclusive access and “smart” residential schools
Access to vocational and technical education remains low for persons with disabilities, and for poor and marginalized groups. To address this, a “residential smart school” should be brought into operation in each local level. In those schools, vocational and technical education should be provided based on the “learn while earning” concept, with priority given to target groups.
Higher education: return on investment and accountability
Past experience shows that most manpower educated through scholarships or reservations has not provided the expected contribution to the state. The tendency to migrate abroad as soon as the service period ends, or as soon as an opportunity arises, is causing the state to lose both investment and intellectual capital.
Therefore, except for subjects that are extremely essential and sensitive for the nation, higher education should be “fee-based.” For students who are financially weak but capable, a provision of “compulsory education loan” should be arranged—on the ward’s recommendation—to study in non-private campuses. Students who take such loan facilities should be required to serve within the country for at least 20 years after graduation. If they wish to go abroad without serving the nation, a provision requiring repayment of the loan with interest will make citizens accountable to the nation.
Teacher dignity and administrative discipline
Unless the teaching profession is made dignified and attractive, quality manpower will not enter this field. Salaries and benefits of teachers, professors, and staff should not be lower than those of employees in other sectors. This should be reviewed scientifically.
However, administrative discipline is equally necessary. Practices of exploiting the state in the name of meeting allowances or other benefits must be ended. A strict rule should be applied that no teacher or employee may receive a meeting allowance for participating in a program held within a 3-kilometer radius of their office.
Controlling institutional distortions and ensuring accountability
The distortion of opening universities or colleges based on guesswork and whims must be stopped. A policy should be adopted to open educational institutions that provide long-term returns only after conducting a detailed study of the country’s needs and financial capacity.
Uncontrolled commercialization carried out in the name of education must be regulated. Private or deemed universities/colleges that operate academic programs by charging high fees should be required, at the time of student admission, to enter into an agreement with “employment assurance” or a guarantee that the investment will be recovered. This will help address the problem of educated unemployment.
Regulation of the private sector and financial transparency
Private educational institutions should be required to spend at least 75 percent of their total income collected from tuition fees and similar sources on salaries and allowances of teachers and staff. Rules should be made that annual profit must not exceed 7 percent, and that earned profit may be spent only on infrastructure development of the institution, and may not be distributed as dividends.
Salaries and benefits of teachers and staff in the private sector should fall within the range of a minimum of 80 percent to a maximum of 120 percent of their government counterparts. To encourage the private sector, unnecessary taxes imposed in higher education and impractical scholarship quotas should be abolished, and an environment should be created to compete on quality.
Nepal Related Topics Education Nepal