“Out of our approximately 1,500 students, there are almost twice as many girls as boys,” says Ganesh Prasad Rijal, the Principal of Shree Shittal School in Chaurjhari, Rukum.[break]
The figure applies to students from grade six to 12 as well as those enrolled as “open students” who previously failed their SLCs. This trend, Rijal shares, started about three or four years ago. As to why he might have more girls than boys enrolled, Rijal says, “Nepal as a whole has a larger population of women and that is true in Rukum, too. It’s not that boys aren’t educated, there are just more girls.”
On top of the larger female population, Rijal also believes the higher girl to boy ratio at his school is because the mentality of people has begun to change, something that they have had a hand in. “We get notices from the Ministry of Education and we sit in meetings and discuss and then go to places and tell them girls should also be educated. We also teach that not being schooled is pointless,” he says.
While it appears this is a step towards women being empowered, there is still a twist in their education.
“Nowadays, if a girl isn’t educated, it would be harder for her to get married,” says Prakash Bikram Shah, Principal of Shree Shittal Campus. Currently offering a Bachelor’s-level degree in Humanities, Commerce, and Education at the Campus, Shah states that most families look for marriageable girls who have at least passed SLC.
Saddicha Tamang, 18, is currently in class 12 and plans on furthering her education at the Campus. Originally from a different part of Rukum, Saddicha shares why she made the move to Chaurjhari. “I was studying in a different school but my older sister lives here and here I can help take care of her, otherwise she’d be alone.” For her, handling school work on top of assisting at her sister’s isn’t too difficult, and education in her opinion is a must. “We need to fix time to study. Education is important because it’s already the generation of computers. Without studying, you can’t get anything done.”
Without any Internet access in the area, Saddicha is slowly leaning basic computer skills. But if it was up to her, she would study in Kathmandu.
“There are facilities there. Here, traveling is hard and education isn’t as good,” she says. But if she were a boy, perhaps that would have been a possibility.
“There are more girls than guys in school here because now girl education is being encouraged but also because more boys go to the Terai to study. Girls are kept at home to help around the house. People are afraid girls will go astray and shame their families.”
Shah agrees and says, “People send their sons to better places in Kathmandu or abroad and daughters are kept at home.”
Regardless of the reasons, the admission for girls has been on the rise and is encouraged by the school and campus.
“We offer additional scholarships for girls,” Shah says and explains that if Rs 4,000 comes in to lower the cost for two students, the will divide the money between four students so more girls can benefit. Shree Shittal offers 100 percent scholarship to five percent of the student body and even educates all Dalit students for free.
These scholarships make a difference in the education received because even though the fees at Shree Shittal are minimal, the majority of the students come from extremely low-income families. For class 11, the fee is Rs 130 a month and Rs 150 for class 12, informs Rijal. Shah says a fee at the campus is Rs 300 per month. Being one of the lowest priced educational facilities in the region means very low income for the institution. But given the socio-economic status of the students’ families, raising the fees isn’t really an option.
Due to a range of reasons like limited accessibility, few facilities, and low initiative on the part of the community, Rijal admits the school is not at the level it should be as currently it is “more about quantity than quality.” Even then, both Rijal and Shah share that more often than not, girls are at the top of their class, a higher percentage of girls pass examinations, and more girls score at the distinction level.
As to what happens after they leave the grounds of Shree Shittal is uncertain though many like Saddicha dream of pursing higher education in Kathmandu. Unfortunately, it appears that finances and their gender don’t work in their favor.
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