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NepalEducation since 1951
After the 1951 revolution, efforts were made to
establish an
education system. The National Education Planning
Commission was
founded in 1954, the All Round National Education
Committee in
1961, and the National Education Advisory Board in 1968 in
order to
implement and to refine the education system. In 1971 the
New
Education System came into operation as an integral part
of the
Fourth Five-Year Plan (1970-75); it was designed to
address
individual, as well as societal, needs in concert with the
goals of
national development
(see The Five-Year Plans
, ch. 3).
Formal schooling in modern times was still constrained
by the
economy and culture. Children were generally needed to
work in the
fields and at home. Many students began school late (at
ages nine
or ten); more than half left school after completing only
one year.
Educating females was viewed as unnecessary; as a
consequence,
their enrollment levels were far lower than those of
males.
Regional variations often hindered the effectiveness of
uniform
text materials and teacher training. Although the
government was
relatively successful in establishing new schools, the
quality of
education remained low, particularly in remote regions
where the
majority of the population lived. Terrain further
inhibited
management and supervision of schools.
Most schools operated for ten months of the year, five
and onehalf days a week. In the warmer regions, June and July
were
vacation months; in the northern regions, mid-December
through midFebruary were vacation months. All schools in Kathmandu
closed for
winter vacation.
In 1975 primary education was made free, and the
government
became responsible for providing school facilities,
teachers, and
educational materials. Primary schooling was compulsory;
it began
at age six and lasted for five years. Secondary education
began at
age eleven and lasted another five years in two
cycles--two years
(lower) and three years (higher). Total school enrollment
was
approximately 52 percent of school-age children
(approximately 70
percent of school-age boys, 30 percent of school-age
girls) in
1984. Secondary school enrollment was only 18 percent of
the
relevant age-group (27 percent of the total boys, 9
percent of the
total girls). About 72 percent of all students were male.
The
Ministry of Education supervised the finance,
administration,
staffing, and inspection of government schools. It also
inspected
private schools that received government subsidies.
As of 1987, Nepal had 12,491 primary schools, 3,824
lowersecondary schools, and 1,501 higher-secondary schools.
There were
55,207 primary, 11,744 lower-secondary, and 8,918
higher-secondary
school teachers. Primary school enrollments totaled
1,952,504
persons; lower-secondary and higher-secondary enrollment
figures
stood at 289,594 and 289,923 persons, respectively.
Curriculum was greatly influenced by United States
models, and
it was developed with assistance from the United Nations
Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. The
National
Education Plan established a framework for universal
education. The
goal of primary education was to teach reading, writing,
and
arithmetic, and to instill discipline and hygiene.
Lower-secondary
education emphasized character formation, a positive
attitude
toward manual labor, and perseverance. Higher-secondary
education
stressed manpower requirements and preparation for higher
education. National development goals were emphasized
through the
curriculum.
The School Leaving Certificate examination, a
nationally
administered and monitored high-school-matriculation
examination,
was given after completion of the higher-secondary level.
Those who
passed this examination were eligible for college. In
addition,
some communities had adult education schools.
In the early 1980s, approximately 60 percent of the
primary
school teachers and 35 percent of secondary school
teachers were
untrained, despite the institution of a uniform method of
training
in 1951. The Institute of Education, part of Tribhuvan
University,
was responsible for inservice and preservice teacher
training
programs. Beginning in 1976, the institute organized a
distancelearning program--electronic links between distant
locations--for
prospective teachers. Developments in telecommunications
will
provide new educational options.
At the higher education level, there was only one
doctoral
degree-granting institution in Nepal, Tribhuvan
University. It was
named after King Tribhuvan Bir Bikram Shah, the
grandfather of King
Birendra, and was chartered in 1959. All public colleges
fell under
Tribhuvan University. Private colleges were operated
independently,
although they also were required to meet the requirements
and
standards set by Tribhuvan University. The total number of
colleges
increased significantly, from 8 in 1958 to 132 in 1988 (69
under
Tribhuvan University and 63 private colleges). In terms of
subjects, these colleges covered a wide range of
disciplines, such
as social sciences; humanities; commerce (business);
physical
sciences, including some medical sciences; engineering;
education;
forestry; law; and Sanskrit. The number of students
enrolled in
higher education institutions totaled almost 83,000 in
1987; the
largest percentage was in humanities and social sciences
(40
percent), followed by commerce (31 percent), science and
technology
(11 percent), and education (6 percent). Approximately 20
percent
of the students enrolled in Tribhuvan University were
females.
The 1981 census found 24 percent of the population to
be
literate; as of 1990, the literacy rate was estimated to
be 33
percent. There still was a big gap between male and female
literacy
rates. About 35 percent of the male population was
literate in
1981, but only 11.5 percent of the female population was.
A gulf
also existed in literacy rates between rural and urban
areas. In
rural areas, the literacy rates for males and females were
33
percent and 9 percent, respectively; in urban areas, they
were
significantly higher, 62 percent and 37 percent,
respectively. The
higher literacy rates in urban areas were largely
attributed to the
availability of more and better educational opportunities,
a
greater awareness of the need for education for employment
and
socioeconomic mobility, and the exodus of educated people
from
rural to urban areas. Nepal launched a twelve-year
literacy program
in 1990, targeting 8 million people between the ages of
six and
forty-five.
There was little doubt among observers that the
historical
monopoly of educational opportunity by members of the
wealthier and
higher caste groups gradually was diminishing. Schools and
colleges
were open to all, and enrollment figures were rising
rapidly. The
long-standing prejudice against the education of women
seemed to be
very slowly breaking down, as attested to by increasing
enrollments
of girls in schools and colleges. Yet two distinct
biases--social
class and geography--remained pronounced in educational
attainment.
Despite general accessibility, education still
nonetheless
primarily served children of landlords, businessmen,
government
leaders, or other elite members of the society, for they
were the
only ones who could easily afford to continue beyond
primary
school. They also were far more able to afford, and likely
to
continue, education beyond the high school level. Many
students in
the general population dropped out before they took the
School
Leaving Certificate examination. There was an even more
important
ingredient for success after leaving school: if the
quality of
available higher education was considered inadequate or
inferior,
higher caste families could afford to send their children
overseas
to obtain necessary degrees. Foreign educational degrees,
especially those obtained from American and West European
institutions, carried greater prestige than degrees from
Nepal.
Higher caste families also had the necessary connections
to receive
government scholorships to study abroad.
Further, education remained largely urban-biased. The
majority
of education institutions, particularly better quality
institutions, were found in urban areas. In rural areas
where
schools were set up, the quality of instruction was
inferior,
facilities were very poor, and educational materials were
either
difficult to find or virtually unavailable. Consequently,
if rural
families were serious about the education of their
children, they
were forced to send them to urban areas, a very expensive
proposition that the vast majority of rural households
could not
afford.
Although there has been a remarkable numerical growth
in the
literacy rates, as well as the number of education
institutions
over the years, the quality of education has not
necessarily
improved. There were few top-notch teachers and
professors, and
their morale was low. At the higher educational level, the
research
focus or tradition was virtually absent, largely because
there were
few research facilities available for professors. There
were some
excellent private schools, mostly located in the Kathmandu
Valley,
but many appeared to be merely money-making ventures
rather than
serious, devoted educational enterprises. The large
majority of
schools and colleges were run by poorly prepared and
poorly trained
teachers and professors. Schools and colleges frequently
were
closed because of strikes. Students had little respect for
teachers
and professors and were concerned with obtaining a
certificate
rather than a quality education. Cheating was rampant
during
examinations at all levels.
Data as of September 1991
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