Education Ministry mulling two intakes in a year

Published On: April 1, 2024 09:30 AM NPT By: Republica | @RepublicaNepal

KATHMANDU, April 1: The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology has shared that it was mulling two intakes in a year in secondary school and universities.

Secretary at the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Suresh Adhikari, said it during an inaugural session of a conference organized by the Monitoring Educational Foundation on Sunday.

Secretary Adhikari said that the policy was being mulled in response to the latest fad among the youths that they quit education halfway once failing their annual exams or drop in the middle of their study for foreign employment.

He said that the new policy would be put in place acknowledging the need for policy review and institutional reform in the education system since 43 per cent students in Grade 9 to Grade 12 had dropped out of school while 15 to 20 per cent were admitted in higher education and some 1.5 million students would go abroad annually.

"It is not that there is a dearth of good colleges for higher education in Nepal but the students seeking higher education abroad seem to go abroad for their better future and lucrative jobs rather than for fulfilling university needs," asserted Adhikari, adding that this concern should be addressed by the new policy.

Secretary Adhikari also spoke of the need to develop universities also as research hub in addition to a center for teaching learning activities. "The government does not always provide funds to the universities. They should be self-reliant," he viewed.

Similarly, former Vice-Chancellor of Nepal Open University Prof Lekhnath Sharma urged all concerned to pay attention towards adopting IT relevant education policy and its pragmatic use so as to bridge the gap among different generations.

During the conference, experts and stakeholders held group discussions on the goals of SDG and education policy, vocational education, agriculture, health and environment education and fiscal sector among others.