The formal schooling system of Nepal requires the students to complete twelve years of education which generally follows the basic education for eight years and secondary education for four years. The education system of Nepal is evolving since then and still in the transition phase. As per the Constitution of Nepal 2015, the school education system has been structured into Pre-Primary Education(PPE), basic education and secondary education. For ensuring whether the school education structure is fully aligned with the constitution or not, the Amendment of Education Act has been undertaken in the year 2016.
Along with realigning the structure of school education, the Amendment of Education Act 2016 has been further involved in various activities regarding reform in school education policies, examinations, teacher management, etc. National Education Council(NEC) has been established for reviewing the policies related to school education (School Education, 2018). National Examination Board (NEB) has been established to operate, manage and upgrade the examination system in a more structure way at local, provincial and national levels.
For the proper coordination and management of the education at the primary and secondary level of school, the MOE (Ministry of Education) holds the responsibility for better functioning of the schools (Education system Nepal, 2015).On the other hand, the CTEVT (Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training) is responsible for the effective coordination of Technical Education and Vocational Training.
The following table shows the school education structure of Nepal before and after the implementation of the Nepalese Constitutio
.png)
Types of Schools in Nepal
Community Schools (Public Schools) and Institutional Schools (Private Schools)
There are various types of schools based on certain kinds of characteristics and functioning of their operations. Generally, the schools in Nepal are broadly categorized into two major types: Community schools and Institutional schools.
Community schools are the type of schools that are supported by the government and are similar to that of public schools. On the other hand, the institutional schools are the type of schools that are supported by the parents and the trustees and are similar to that of private schools.
After the establishment of the Constitution Act 2015 and the federal government structure, the local level government is responsible for the operation and management of basic and secondary education (Chikanbanjar, 2017). With this reform, there is the maximum probability that the operations and the management of the public schools can be improved which was neglected in the previous public education system of Nepal.
Furthermore, the community schools are divided into three subcategories which are as follows:
- Community-Aided Schools: These are the type of community schools where the responsibility regarding paying the salary and other forms of expenses is in the hand of the government.
- Community-Managed Schools: These are the type of community schools that are fully supported by the government for the teacher's salary and other funds but the community is responsible for the management of the schools.
- Community-Unaided Schools: These are the type of community schools that might get partial support or may not get any support from the government for running their operations.
Besides, there are also some of the schools in Nepal that also run under the category of religious schools. These schools do receive the governmental support of Nepal if they abide by the formal school education system by getting registered with the DOE (Department of Education) as well as adhering to follow the education acts and regulations.
The Government of Nepal has been providing annual grants to religious schools at various school levels (Basic and Secondary level). The government is also involved in providing free textbooks and scholarships to encourage the students for continuing their education that helps them to garb opportunities and overcome the challenges (Government to regulate all religious schools, 2015).
Some of the sub-categories of religious schools that have been operating around the country in various parts are discussed below:
- Madarasa: These are the type of religious schools that are operating for the people of the Muslim Community.
- Ashram/Gurukul: These are the type of religious schools that are operating for the people of the Hindu Community.
- Gumba/Vihar: These are the type of religious schools that are operating for the people of the Buddhist Community.
Types of Examination Board in Nepal at School Level
NEB (National Examination Board)
National Examination Board was established in 2016 A.D., replacing HSEB which was established in 1989 under the Higher Secondary Education Act. The major aim of establishing the National Examination Board (NEB) of Nepal was to operate, manage and upgrade the school education in a more structured way that supports the development of the examination system. NEB is an autonomous and organized institution with uninterrupted succession which has a separate seal for its work implementation purpose. All the duties and responsibilities that have been performed by HSEB (Higher Secondary Education Board) have been transferred to NEB (National Examination Board) including all the liquid and fixed assets.
The responsibilities regarding approval for school affiliation, various scholarship programs, procedures for the operation of the school are managed by the local bodies. And the activities related to curriculum design, development and determination of equivalence are now managed by the Curriculum Development Centre.
CTEVT (Council For Technical Education and Vocational Training)
Established in 1989 A.D., the CTEVT (Council For Technical Education and Vocational Training) board is the national autonomous body that is responsible for the policy formulation and coordination for Technical Education and Vocational Training(TEVT) programs in Nepal.
Besides policy formulation and coordination, some of the major activities that are carried out by this board include preparation of competency-based curriculum, developing skill standards of various occupations and testing the skills of the people, conducting need assessment for research, trainings, etc.
School Sector Development Plan (SSDP)
To ensure equitable access to quality education for all the students at school, the government of Nepal has developed School Sector Development Plan (SSDP) on July 2016 which is a seven year period of education development plan (2016-2023). The main goal of SSDP is " to contribute to socioeconomic development and reduce disparities in the country through the continuous and inclusive development of its human resources capacity by facilitating all citizens with opportunities to become functionally literate, numerate, and to develop the basic life skills and knowledge required to enjoy a productive life, taking into account the diversity of context and needs and with regards to the forthcoming federalization of the country ". (School Sector Development Plan, 2016).
References
Chikanbanjar, R. (2017, November 19). Education ethos. Retrieved from The Himalayan Times: https://thehimalayantimes.com/...
Government to regulate all religious schools. (2015, September 29). (H. N. Service, Producer) Retrieved from The Himalayan Times: https://thehimalayantimes.com/...
School Education. (2018). In School Level Education Statistics of Nepal (pp. 9-10). Bhaktapur: Ministry of Education Science and Technology .
(2016). School Sector Development Plan. Ministry of Education (MOE). Kathmandu: Government of Nepal. Retrieved from https://www.moe.gov.np/assets/...
