Subject Teacher Shortage in Kalikot Community Schools
Community schools in Kalikot have been facing a constant shortage of subject teachers. There is a persistent lack of teachers for mathematics, science and English in these community schools.
Rupadevi Secondary School, located at Malkot Uchch in Naraharinath Rural Municipality–7, has not been able to recruit a mathematics teacher even after advertising the post 18 times. This remote school, which borders Ramaroshan of Achham, advertised the post for the 19th time after it could not find a teacher for a mathematics position received last year under the federal grant quota.
Since Baisakh, the school advertised the post 18 times at intervals of 15 days, but no applications were received. School Principal Dan Bahadur Budha said that it has become very difficult to find mathematics teachers.
According to Principal Budha, the school made its 19th call for applications on Kartik 30, but it has been difficult to find a teacher with a teaching licence. Around 90 percent of the population in Uchchav belongs to the Dalit community, and it takes two hours of walking through a forest trail to reach the nearest other school. As the school is far away, local residents raised voluntary contributions and established Rupadevi School in 2035 BS.
At present, 375 students are studying from Early Childhood Development (ECD) up to Grade 10 in this school. Although there are three permanent primary-level posts, a total of 13 teachers are working in the school through municipal grants and private sources.
Similarly, Kalika Secondary School in Balachaur, Subhakalika Rural Municipality–2, did not receive a single application from a teacher with a teaching licence even after advertising five times for a secondary-level science teacher for the previous academic session. As no applications were received, the federal grant for a science teacher provided by the rural municipality for the academic session 2081/82 was frozen.
After failing to find a teacher despite repeated advertisements, the school has been running classes by appointing an unlicensed science teacher. Principal Saraswati Basnet said that, based on a decision of the school management committee meeting held on Jeth 10, local resident Amar Bahadur Shahi, who holds a bachelor’s degree in science, was appointed as a teacher with a monthly salary of Rs 25,000 raised from parents.
Among the 501 students studying in this school, 283 are from the Dalit community. The school has three permanent posts at the primary level, and a total of 13 teachers are working through municipal grants, federal grants and private sources.
Likewise, Dahal Secondary School in Sukatiya and Janata Secondary School in Chhati, where there are no permanent secondary-level posts, have also not been able to secure teachers for science, mathematics and English under the federal grant.
Navaraj Acharya, Head of the Education, Youth and Sports Section of Subhakalika Rural Municipality, said that government policy is to provide a federal grant of Rs 43,689 per teacher for three teachers of English, mathematics and science in each of the 12 secondary schools where there are no permanent posts. However, as teachers are simply not available, the schools are in difficulty.
Palata Rural Municipality advertised on its own last year, using the federal grant budget, to manage teachers for English, mathematics and science. Although it advertised for 10 English, 10 mathematics and 12 science teacher positions, no applications were received, and the concerned schools were then instructed to search for teachers themselves.
After that, Dudheshillo Secondary School in Bersankot advertised three times but still could not find a teacher, Principal Man Bahadur Rokaya said.
“I contacted networks across the country to find a science teacher,” said Rokaya, who is also the Karnali Province Chairperson of the Nepal Teachers’ Association. “When no teacher could be found anywhere, we persuaded a teacher from a neighbouring school to accept an appointment. Science teacher Amar Bahadur Shahi, who was working at Kalika Secondary School in Dhaulagouh Dori, was appointed by adding Rs 10,000 from private sources.”
Chief of the Education Development and Coordination Unit, Kalikot, Harsha Prasad Chaulagai, said that the lack of subject teachers is a common problem in all nine local levels of Kalikot. He stated that students who study English, mathematics and science give low priority to the teaching profession, which has resulted in the shortage of subject teachers.
Kalikot School News