Kathmandu - The government has allocated 2 trillion 3 billion 662 million Rupees (around US$ 1 billion 532 million) for the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) in the Budget and Programme for financial year 2024/2025 in the joint meeting of the both Houses of the Parliament presented by the Minister of Finance Mr Barsha Man Pun. According to the media, compared to this year's, the next year's budget is increased by 6 billion Rupees real terms but in proportion to total budget it has decreased. In the current year, portion of budget for the Ministry stood at 11.64 percent of the total, whereas the next year, stands at 10.94 percent, according to the news. 

It has been reported that the children of Karnali Province have been given five rupees more than other provinces for their mid-day meals. Similarly, in the presented budget, it is mentioned that 1,500 teachers will be trained to teach in ECDE, and scholarships will be extended to children from class 6  to 12 of the underprivileged groups. Until now, underprivileged children from class 9 to 12 were eligible for this scholarship. It was mentioned in the news that the budget presented in the parliament includes the programme to build 1,000 classrooms to make disable and gender-friendly with safety measures in the public schools and to connect the 12th grade students with skills and employment. There was news that Finance Minister Pun, while presenting the budget, said that the teacher posts will be settled and adjusted based on the number of students in coordination with the Local Level i.e. municipalities.

As every year, this year too, the Finance Minister of the Federal Government has performed the ritual of presenting the country's Budget and the Programme in the joint meeting of the both houses of the Parliament. Programs related to education have been mentioned in 19 points in the budget with the slogan 'Qualitative Improvement in Education: Foundation of Prosperity: ' but most of those items have also been repeated from the previous programme and budget. Even though the political coalition has changed, the government is still led by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal. The government does not seem to have bothered to review how many of the programs presented last year were implemented and what were the achievements.

The budget does not give a foundation to be confident that the implementation of the mentioned programs will give the result of 'qualitative improvement in education'. The budget shows that the  Minister of Education has even taken the 'trouble' of identifying the main problems faced by education sector, prioritizing them and selecting appropriate programs to address them and managing the budget for it. Neither the reflection of the programs expected from the popular-Minister of Education were also experienced. The President Educational Reform Program, which was suspended by the Minister of Education, has been continued while see is holding the post, for instance. It is difficult to say who is in the 'driving seat' of the sector and whom should the credits or responsibility be going. The government has not considered it necessary to address the situation where teachers in different municipalities of the country could not get salary for a long time due to various reasons causing the schools closed due to naturally agitated teachers.

Fifteen best public schools have been announced in the Economic Survey of the Financial Year 2080-081 published by the Ministry of Finance. It was mentioned in the news that the names of the best 15 schools have been announced based on the fact that more than 100 students have participated in the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) and have more than 30 percent of the students who have obtained a GPA of 3.2 or more. 

The MoEST has issued a new Working Procedure to prevent financial manipulation in the transfer of community school teachers. With the endorsement of these procedures, there was news that the transfer that stopped since March 18, 2024 has also been opened. 

The new Procedures says that an application must be submitted according to the Schedule 17 of the Education Regulations, 2071. The Schedule requires the consents of the School Management Committees (SMC) of the discharging and admitting schools. Pro-SMC advocates were agitated for the news that the new Procedures was being drafted without the role of SMC in the transfer of teachers.

There was news that Janga Bahadur Aryal, who is the head of personnel administration and manpower development division, has been appointed as the member secretary of the National Examination Board by the MoEST. The Ministry has appointed a new Member Secretary after the mandatory retirement of Mr Durga Aryal.

It was mentioned in the news that Curriculum Development Center (CDC) has arranged to apply online and get certificates for secondary level, especially 10th and 12th grade equivalency. The CDC has upgraded the service so that the equivalence certificate can be obtained in one day if all required testimonials are submitted online, mentioned in the news.

Another news was that the number of female teachers in classes 1 to 5 by this academic session has increased to more than a half. In the previous year, there were 47.2 percent female teachers at that level, but this year the proportion reached to 54.1 percent, mentioned the news.

Governments have been expecting and planning for the inclusion of women in education for many years. Now this has reached here partly due to policies and partly to circumstances. There are indications that this number will increase further. It is also necessary to look at it from a critical point of view because as in some other fields (e.g. in community forestry or in business) there has not been a noticeable improvement in the results. This issue should be looked into the Civil Service as well. Of course, in a society where women are seen as weak and delicate, it may be relevant for women themselves to take up the challenge of such a study. In any case, a large number of facilitators who happen to be women in the elementary grades have kept the lower grades going and even whole schools in many cases.

There was also a news that 12 subsidized teachers working in Jajarkot's Junichande Rural Municipality (RM) have not received their salary for five months.

It was reported that 15 teachers and staff from the schools of Khaniabas RM in Dhading went to Thailand to participate in UG Five teachers training.

There was a news in the government-controlled Gorkhapatra Daily that there have been structural and qualitative changes in education from the primary level to the university level as well as in the political and economic fields in the 17 years since the establishment of the Republic. Gorkhapatra illustrated promulgation of the Free  and Compulsory Education Act and increment in student enrollment as major achievements of of the republic era.

There was a news in Online Khabar news portal that Tribhuvan University (TU) has published the Academic Calendar planning to publish the results in three to four months of taking the examination under the semesterial system in undergraduate and postgraduate levels. It was also mentioned in the news that TU has asked for the commitment of the student organization in the calendar published by the University. Ever since he was appointed, the Vice-Chancellor of the TU has been looking for a commitment from the student organizations not to padlock buildings and premises, stating that padlocking by students or other entities in the University would disrupt the regular work of the University.

There was news in Ratopati online news portal that the discussion about the 'Nepal University Bill' in the Education, Science and Information Technology Committee of the House of Representatives has made consensus for having a ceremonial Chancellor and an Executive Vice Chancellor.

After the extreme heat in the Terai districts, various Local Governments and umbrella organizations of private school owners have decided to close the schools for some time.

The school was closed in Mughum-Karmarong RM in Mugu after students went to collect yarchagumba (an aphrodisiac herb known alias as Himalayan Viagra), a news published last week. According to the news, after the Municipality opened collection of the herb from 29th of May, students of all 12 schools of the RM have gone to high pastures (called Patans) to collect the half-plant, half-caterpillar tonic.

Such news comes every year in one or the other media but there is no mention of the need to align the academic session to local needs there. Aware parents do not send their children to school knowing that their children are not going to get worthy or at least comparable outcomes. If we are responsible, it is an opportunity for education planners, teachers and all kinds of education experts to accept that education has not reached to the people. Can anyone tell us how much our education system that has employment as a major goal can give the family in return vis-à-vis income from yarcha for how many years of schooling? Why don't those who concerns that they have dropped out of school for going to collect the herb, initiate to set up temporary learning centers at the place where they 'pick up the yarcha'? Or it is possible to designate the time of picking the yarcha as a holiday in the academic calendar, like the rains in Madhesh?

There was news that at Chandi Devi National Secondary School in Kumaltari, Byas Municipality, Tanahun, students have been imparted the skills of making duna-tapari (leaf plates and bowls) from sal (Shorea) leaves and, different kinds of clay pots. Similarly, there was news that Ambukhaireni RM has provided a scholarship of 5K per month to two Chepang students.

Mangala Devi Singh Foundation has set up a Revolving Fund of 500K to provide scholarships to political science students in Padma Kanya Multiple Campus, the news covered. 

Indra Bilas Ghimire wrote in Gorkhapatra that if children are happy in the ECD class, they will like to go to school, if they are happy in school, they can be more creative to learn new things.  He argued that children should not be locked in a room and be subjected to mental pressure.

Similarly, Krishna Adhikari's article has been featured in Gorkhapatra, claiming that the government should protect the investment of Janak Shiksha Material Center as well as the investment of private publishers, saying that it is easy to provide textbooks due to private publications.

Baburam Dawadi wrote yet in the Gorkhapatra that to make the university an excellent educational institution, priority should be given researches according to the needs of the country, collaboration with industry and an educational system based on skills should be implemented.

Saroj GC wrote in Kantipur that making the teaching and university teachers professional, competitive and attracting the most qualified manpower can be the starting point of the journey to ensure the academic quality of the university as a whole.

The purpose of this news review is to classify and synthesize the educational content of the week and provide objective comments from the point of view of social justice and creative padagogy to the policy makers and stakeholders in one place. In this joint effort of Center for Education Policy and Practice (CEPP) and Edukhbar, the news of daily newspapers Kantipur, Gorkhapatra and The Himalayan Times, online newsportals Online Khabar, Setopati and Ratopati and Himalaya TV and Nepal Television from 25-31 May 2024 are covered - Editor.

Read last week's content : Last week in education 

Read it in Nepali : शिक्षक दरबन्दी मिलान गर्ने सरकारको घोषणा