KATHMANDU, June 27: The Education, Health and Information Technology Committee of the House of Representatives has reached a consensus on key provisions of the School Education Bill, limiting Early Childhood Development (ECD) classes to two years.
In a meeting held on Friday with Education Minister Raghuji Pant, the committee agreed that ECD programs at private schools will also be restricted to two years. Private institutions, which currently run ECD for up to four years below Grade 1, will no longer be allowed to do so.
Early childhood development helping secure children’s futures
The bill also outlines that individuals teaching in ECD must have completed Grade 12 and receive mandatory training before entering service. Teachers will not be allowed to work for less than the minimum wage as per the Labour Act.
The committee did not approve the CPN (Maoist Centre)’s proposal to designate ECD teachers as “child development teachers.”
Additionally, the bill allows private schools to be registered under the Company Act, moving away from the previous provision in the Eighth Amendment of the Education Act, which mandated operation under a trust (guthi) model.
The bill is scheduled to advance in the House of Representatives on Saturday.
