From blog: https://strong-nepal.blogspot.com/2020/05/government-accepts-that-public-school.html



We have been told by experts the absurdity of the current budget proposed by the finance minister. It was revealed that his background is working with the INGO and other foreign agencies. That would bear greatly on his mindset. No wonder, the budget has been panned by opponents and independents.

What stood out as an oddity to me was the proposal that private schools be made responsible to assist a government school. What a stupid proposal! This is basically an acceptance by the government that the schools run by the government and communities have failed. In itself, it is not that far off from reality. The way public schools are run in Nepal is one of the biggest wastes of public money.

It is odd why the finance minister would propose that each private school be required to look after at least one public school in the mode of corporate social responsibility. He envisions that profit-seeking, tuition-coaching imposing, business ventures would be an appropriate body to cooperate with public schools that they are competing to take away students from. Who could have thought such genius would be at the government?



Private schools are proposed to help in developing educational infrastructure and improve quality of education. It is doubtful if he has looked at the private schools around Nepal. Most of the private schools do not even have their own good physical infrastructure. They are run on residential buildings with cramped classrooms with teaming students. There are hardly any sporting facilities or playgrounds. All their focus is on exams so make the students attend schools 12 hours a day as if they had no other venues to learn. It is the private schools that have developed the social belief that education means getting good scores in the exams.

What the government is basically accepting is that it has failed to provide good, quality education to the more than 50 lakhs students enrolled from grades 1 to 12. It has shied away from one of its basic responsibilities. It has shown basic decency does not exist among the ruling political class of Nepal. It is nothing to be surprised about. It is trying to do the same thing with the whole nation by giving the responsibility to develop Nepal to foreign countries by just acting as their commission agents.



There are many public schools around Nepal that have been setting great examples. I have read of them and appreciated their efforts to be innovative and responsive to students and parents, as also the community they serve. In some a single woman principal has made the school become a great success as in Nepalgunj, and there is a similar example in Ilam district. If government had wanted to actually improve quality of education, then it could easily have sought for the models that have been successful and then made a task force and policy to emulate such models in other areas with proper training.

The government could start by making schools free of politics by not allowing political parties to have their student unions in schools and colleges and similarly, it would bar any teachers from becoming political cadres. But no, that would mean schools actually hiring good and deserving teachers. How would these political parties work in favor of the nation while hurting their own selfish and evil intentions?



There are great alternative ways to impact public education positively and even higher education. Last year alone, Nepal lost Rs. 40 billion on students going abroad for education. The budget for education sector has mostly been like hotels buying rotten tomatoes from the Kalimati market for to make “achaar.” When the education quality is mediocre, there is no possibility to produce citizens with high intelligence and independent thinking.

That would be to the detriment to the political parties; hence they perpetuate the suicidal policy in the education system. There have been many studies to suggest to the government on making improvements, but such events are merely to make a show. None of the research is used to make policy decisions. Education is where the inequality begins among Nepalese and perpetuates for life. This is fundamentally the core problem of the Nepalese system.