Year after year, students lament about the same problems - the subject matter being too theoretical, learning is more about memorizing texts, no environment for their holistic growth. These complaints and discussions have always existed. With some observers blaming the schools while others have blamed the students themselves. However, talking to the students, the problem, as they see it, lies elsewhere.
Tithi Jha, currently a student at the National Institute of Technology (N.I.T.), Silchar (India), says, “The problem in Nepal is that, when it comes to technology, the institutions in Nepal are lagging behind. Not only that, but the practical experiences are extremely limited. I’m only in my first year, but am already getting several internship opportunities; in my fourth year, I’ll have already gotten a job.”
Most students seem to find the lack of practicality within subjects a problem. Even in a subject like Science, although the current system does require particle classes and exams, it still pales in comparison to what students actually do require to study and indeed understand the subject in the future.
Jha also talked about the lack of clarity regarding the course selections in high schools. “Currently, 11th and 12th graders in the Science stream are required to take a class similar to Social Studies. There is no correlation between the two subjects, so it does not make sense to make students study both these simultaneously.”
Simrika Basnet, a tenth grader, also shared the same tone. “We are taught subjects as different disciplines, not as integration of courses. The concept of interdisciplinarity is non-existent.”
She also remained skeptical of how the current system actually prepares them for the future. “Our current system prepares us for jobs that might not even exist in the future. By then, robots and other forms of technology may have taken over simple, monotonous tasks. The creativity of the human mind is the only thing that sets us apart from them. But in a system where creativity is nullified, we are definitely not getting prepared for the future.”
Apart from these, students are also compelled to give almost all their time to memorizing paragraphs of texts. Students of grades ten and twelve, who practice from past questions, more or less know what they will be asked in their exams. Thus, they memorize the answers as their form of studying.
However, Jha did acknowledge the fact that there certainly are some positive aspects of the current system. "I do not regret having done my schooling in Nepal for one bit. Yes, I have come to learn that we did not get to learn everything in depth. However, that was because of time constraints that teachers themselves faced, rather than them not knowing the content. Studying here certainly gave me a strong base.”
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