SINDHUPALCHOWK, July 1: The results of the SEE examination, which is considered as the iron gate of school education, were not encouraging this year. Over half of the students failed. This drop in pass rate has been blamed on the new letter grading system adopted this year.

However, this is just an excuse. No method can fail to yield excellent results if the study itself is excellent. An example of this is the Shree Melamchi-Ghyang Secondary School of Helambu, a remote Himalayan village. As always, the school has managed to get 100 percent results this year. A total of 15 students of Melamchi Ghyang scored 'A' plus and 12 students scored 'A' grade in SEE.

It has been 17 years since the students of Melamchi-Ghyang Secondary School started appearing in the SEE examinations, previously known as SLC. This is the 17th time the school has achieved 100 percent pass rate.

"For 17 years, we have been able to achieve 100 percent results continuously," Purna Gautam, the school’s former principal, told Republica over a phone call.

Bidusha Nepal, who studied in the shivering snow and an environment with dense fog, topped among all the students of the school. She scored a 3.91 GPA. She hails from Indrawati Rural Municipality, Helambu. Thingarila Tamang, who came to study from Sindhuli, also scored 'A' plus.

Out of 27 students who took the exam, 15 were female students. "This time we failed to become district toppers," rued Gautam, who handed over the responsibility of the school to Tika Limbu with his retirement date approaching.

Even the results of a private school with accessible facilities are not always the same. If so, how can one expect the same results from community schools? But, Melamchi-Ghyang Secondary School is consistently producing excellent results.

Helambu, which is regarded as the 'village of monasteries', 'town of apples', and famous for the residence of the Sherpa community and the Hyolmo culture, is full of hardship, suffering and deprivation due to geographical reasons. However, the students studying here surprisingly score 'A' plus or 'A'.

None of the students had to settle for the second grade as all the students in the school passed with distinction and first division.

Students of Melamchi-Ghyang Secondary School appeared for the SLC for the first time in 2006. According to Gautam, the secret of success lies in responsive management, hardworking teachers and supportive parents. 

"Success can only be achieved if the school management and teachers work together for the betterment of students,” he said.

“Teachers here interact with the students and teach them as much as they can,” the newly appointed principal, Tika Limbu agreed to Gautam's statement. 

One has to walk more than a day to get from one village in Helambu to another. There is only one village consisting of 100 households in Melamchi Ghyang, that lies towards the source of the Melamchi River.

There is a road connecting Melamchi Ghyang and Dhule but vehicles cannot reach most of the villages in winter. Vehicles also do not operate along the roads in Helambu for four months with the onset of monsoon. Materials including daily necessities should be carried from Melamchi or Timbu market to the village. 

So, the students in Helambu or Melamchi have only potatoes to eat most of the time.

School teachers say they go to class with proper preparation. According to the teachers, they teach only by making unit and lesson plans according to the annual lesson plan.

"Hands-on lessons and unit plans never fail," they say. The school building collapsed in the earthquake of April 25, 2015. The school operated for a few years in temporary shelters. Even then, the results of Melamchi-Ghyang Secondary School did not deteriorate. Now, Melamchi-Ghyang Secondary School has become state-of-art in terms of physical structure.

The school has been teaching the students of primary level in English since 2052 BS. Students from a dozen districts of the country have been studying at this residential school every year.

At present, 3020 students from Khotang, Okhaldhunga, Morang, Solukhumbu, Syangja, Dhanusha, Mahottari, Saptari, Sarlahi, Dolakha, Nuwakot and other districts are residing in the school hostel.

The school teaches Hyolmo culture, lifestyle, and even language, and the environment there is engaging. The Tibetan language is taught as an optional subject from classes one to five. 

Gautam, who went to visit the serene Helambu, started this school from the balcony of a house three and a half decades ago.

He contributed to improving the quality of public schools and was declared Nagarik Nayak on the occasion of the 11th anniversary of Nepal Republic Media.

Gautam is retiring in two years. That is why he assigned the responsibility of headmaster to Limbu to impart leadership skills. Gautam has been grooming Limbu so that he can fill the gap once he retires.

 
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