Kathmandu, August 21
Following several protests, the heavily anticipated School Education Bill has been passed with a majority by the parliamentary committee. The bill was passed by a meeting of the Education, Science and Technology Committee under the Lower House of the Federal Parliament held today.
On the other hand, chief opposition parties, including CPN-MC, Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), furnished a note of dissent on the bill.
CPN-MC lawmakers Devendra Poudel, Rekha Sharma, Mahendra Rai Yadav and legislator Gyanu Basnet jointly expressed their dissenting views on the bill. They have stated that public officials should send their children to government schools.
Although the School Education Bill has been discussed for a long time, one issue has yet to be resolved - the scholarship provided by private schools. Private schools will be required to provide a three per cent scholarship under the bill.
In their five-point dissenting opinion, the opposition has demanded that children of all civil servants and public representatives who receive state treasury salaries should attend public schools in order to improve public education.
Five points of the 'note of dissent' from CPN-MC
Concerns for pre-primary child development teachers: Former pre-primary child development assistants should be allowed to compete regardless of age, and those who fail should be compensated based on their length of service.
New appointments and professional development: Individuals who will be appointed to teach early childhood development and education following the implementation of this act should be referred to as early childhood development teachers, and their professional development should be addressed in the bill. Early childhood development and education through Grade XII should be considered school education.
Scholarships and social responsibility of private schools: Scholarships provided by privately funded schools should be included in accordance with the subcommittee's decision. Accommodation and clothing should also be provided for students from martyred, missing, injured and impoverished families. The government should be in charge of making the necessary arrangements.
Compulsory government schools for civil servants and public representatives: To improve the quality of public education, a legal provision should be enacted requiring the children of all those (one or both parents) who receive salaries from the state treasury to attend public schools.
Agreement with teachers: The government should include the pertinent issues in the bill in accordance with previous agreements with the Confederation of Nepalese Teachers.
RSP lawmaker Sumana Shrestha also presented a note of dissent, stating that early childhood development is the foundation of education.
"Although many members of the committee share the same views on this issue, it is unfortunate that the current report was not adopted," she stated. "I disagree that those who work in child development to promote holistic development - physical, social, emotional, intellectual and linguistic - are referred to as facilitators rather than teachers. Currently, over 95 per cent of women work in child development."
She emphasised that she has always felt that the ministry has used the budget as an excuse to work in child development while neglecting it. "How can anyone come into this field and stay if there is no provision for career development? This is an administrative flaw," she said.
"While we develop new qualifications, we should extend some golden handshake to the teachers who have previously worked in this field."
The Compulsory and Free Education Act, 2018 specifies percentages of 10, 12 and 15 depending on the number of students. However, except in a few institutional schools, and unless the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) strictly enforces it, it is not implemented, she added.
Shrestha said it is critical that scholarships be explained in the report on the School Education Bill. She highlighted that everyone has witnessed the practice of charging various types of fees, including lab fees, library fees, food fees, sports fees and additional fees. Such fees discourage scholarships for the underprivileged, Dalits and those with great potential.
"How can low-income families afford higher costs associated with urban institutional schools?" she asked, adding, "This is a roundabout way of denying opportunities to the underprivileged. It is everyone's responsibility to uphold the fundamental right to education."
She opined that schools with accommodation facilities should provide scholarships in accordance with the 2018 compulsory and free education system, based on the number of students who can afford to stay.
She stated, "In our country, 20.37 per cent of the population is in extreme poverty, with a daily income of less than Rs 200. Unless they are given a housing scholarship, they will never have the opportunity to attend a formal school. This category requires a full scholarship (including accommodations)."
She also stated that female teachers should receive special consideration for leave and transfers related to reproductive health and women's issues. Additionally, Article 38(5) of the Constitution stipulates special opportunities for women in areas like education, health, employment and social security, based on the principle of positive discrimination.
