Minister for Education, Science and Technology Shishir Khanal has stated that the ministry was holding discussions to amend the modality of the President Educational Reform Programme as they were receiving more complaints that the programme was running in a distributive model rather than in a need-based approach.
Addressing the 8th convention of Education Journalist’s Network (EJON) on Sunday, Minister Khanal said that the Ministry was discussing with the concerned authorities whether the President Educational Reform Programme should be implemented as it is or be modified.
He said that the Ministry was also discussing to provide salary to school teachers every month. Currently, teachers are getting salary once in four months, Khanal said.
Similarly, the Ministry has been making effort to make the textbooks for new academic session available in time, he said.
Minister Khanal said that the learning achievement in school education is pathetic, which must be corrected. He said, “Now, we need to formulate education policies by keeping in mind the global development of artificial intelligent in recent time.”
Because of the tendency to consider schools that produce good results in the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) as good, the lower classes are not receiving priority, he said.
Dr. Mahashram Sharma, chairman of the National Curriculum Development Centre, said that it would be difficult to implement any education policy unless the Education Act is in place with clear responsibilities and rights of the different structures of the government.
Outgoing chairman of EJON Prakriti Adhikari said distribution system of mid-day meal and sanitary pads should be monitored as there could have been huge irregularities. The education system of the country could be reformed only if the authorities have strong determination, Adhikari said.
The convention has elected a new committee in the chairmanship of Rabi Chandra Parajuli of Nepal Television.
Surya Prasad Pandey of Gorkhapatra Daily is vice-chairman, Binod Ghimire of The Kathmandu Post is general secretary, Parbata Chaudhary of Radio Kantipur is secretary and Manjima Dhakal of The Rising Nepal is treasurer in the new committee.
Rupesh Acharya, Dipak Aryal, Sunita Lohoni, Arjun Kafle, Nunuta Rai and Dinesh Gautam are members in the new committee.
Source : TRN,
