Stakeholders stress on prioritizing technical education to defuse SEE paranoia

Kathmandu–Stakeholders have stressed on the need of prioritizing on technical education from the school level itself to dispel the fear of the class 10 Secondary Education Examination (SEE).

Speaking at a face-to-face programme organised by Reporters Club Nepal here today, the speakers representing the various stakeholders called for stopping what they called 'over-politicization' in the education sector and to focus on skill-oriented education.

This suggestion comes in the context of the SEE results of students from the public schools not being up to the mark and satisfactory compared to the results of the students from the private schools.

The National Examination Board (NEB) made public the results of the SEE 2075 on Thursday. Dr Surendra KC said the quality of education in public schools has been largely declining as the political parties have been interfering with teacher appointment and school education.

He called for an end to this trend and the teachers to be sincere to their profession. Dr KC stressed that the state should bring policies and programmes so that the educated people are capable of and get employment after graduation. He added that first the national goal of our education system should be well-defined.

"The political leadership should take up the responsibility for failure of education and the teachers should be sincere to their profession and the nation," he said.

Higher Secondary and Secondary Schools Association of Nepal (HISSAN) general secretary Lok Bahadur Bhandari said technical schools should be opened at every local level as announced when Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli assumed his office and subjects should be taught from class 9 itself.

Guardians' Association of Nepal president Suprabhat Bhandari suggested decentralizing SEE to the province level and making the education system learning-based rather than based on rote-learning.

Private and Boarding Schools Organization Nepal (PABSON) co-chair DK Dhungana said that the state has been treating the schools operated in private investment as second-class citizen although the number of students securing highest grades in SEE from the private schools has been found increasing every year.

National Private and Boarding Schools Association (N-PABSAN) president Rituraj Sapkota demanded a change in the government's policy of not providing government scholarships to class 11 and 12 students in private schools.