By Pratibedan Baidya
Though the result of School Leaving Certificate (SLC) examinations announced last week, brought happiness to over 46 percent people, a number of students and at least one guardian committed suicide after they or their wards failed to secure pass marks.
Narayan Timilsina (43), father of Nabin Timilsina, a student at Bhuntandevi Secondary School in Hetauda, ended his life by consuming poison when he did not find his son’s symbol number in a local newspaper. It was later revealed that Nabin had passed the exam in first division.
Students curiously looking through the SLC result sheets published in a newspaper, Thursday, July 06 06. nepalnews.com/rh
Students curiously looking through the SLC result sheets published in a newspaper,…
The newspaper had downloaded the SLC result from one of the websites based in Kathmandu but had missed some symbol numbers while publishing it. By the time it issued a correction around 10 a.m., it was too late.
15-year-old Sunita, daughter of Lokendra Chaudhari of Rajbiraj-7, consumed pesticide after not finding her symbol number in the newspapers. 17-year-old Nilam, daughter of Abhinarayan Dangol in Sunsari district also committed suicide by consuming poison upon learning that she had failed.
Neelam Dhungana (19), a resident of Ramgunj Belgachhiya of Sunsari district and a student of Ram Sita Secondary School, committed suicide after being told that she could not pass the exam. These are a few examples of how students take failure in SLC exams as the end of their career seeing nothing but darkness at the end of the tunnel.
Usually referred to as the “Iron Gate” to enter into the higher studies—though the reference seems turning obsolete now—students who fail in the exams find themselves in an environment of humiliation with no opportunities for technical or vocational education in front of them for the whole year.
According to the Office of the Controller of Examinations (OCE), out of 225,032 students who appeared in the SLC exams early this year, only 46.5 percent of the students passed the exam.
Talking to Nepalnews, former Education Minister and leader of CPN (UML), Modnath Prashrit, said during the minority government of UML (1995-96), he had formed a committee to study what could be done to engage the students who had failed in SLC in productive work and develop them as technical manpower.
According to Prashrit, the committee recommended that the government open at least 60 technical and vocational training centres across the country and provide training to the students who failed in the SLC. They could enroll themselves in further technical or vocational studies after taking exams from Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT).
But none of the governments thereafter bothered to implement the suggestion. “As the country needs more technical manpower, the government should help students who fail in the SLC to acquire technical and vocational skills,” said Prashrit.
Suprabhat Bhandari, chairman of Guardians Association of Nepal, too says that the government should announce some short-term training to the students who have failed in the SLC exams. “Since the students of this age group are most vulnerable and their number is also high, the country would suffer great loss if the students are attracted towards wrong direction. Hence, the government should announce short term packages to make them self-reliant and provide some vocational training,” he added.
According to Bhandari, pass percentage could be increased if the public schools were empowered to provide competitive education to the students. “We have asked the government to improve education system in the country and provide some skill development training to the students, who fail in the SLC exam to utilize their time and save them from adopting wrong path.”
Educationist Mana Prasad Wagle believes that it is next to impossible to address the problem immediately since it would warrant complete transformation in the country’s education sector. “More than 21 billion rupees was allocated for public schools last year but the pass percentage is quite low. There is waste of huge resources in the education sector and, hence, needs to be transformed immediately,” he added.
Only 25 percent of the students from the government-run schools – who appeared in the SLC exams– passed the exams in 2005.
According to Wagle, there is a need to change negative perception prevalent in Nepali society attached to manual work. “It will take at least next five years to address the problem of SLC failed students if we start homework right now,” he added.
Talking to Nepalnews, Sarala Nepal, a housewife residing in Balkhu, Kathmandu, said that the government should announce special package for skills development targeting youth in rural areas. “Most of the students who failed the SLC exams are from rural areas and have been affected from the armed conflict in the country. Hence the government must announce some programmes to help them taking benefit of the on-going peace process,” she said.
Krishna Dahal, Treasurer of the National Private and Boarding School Organization of Nepal (N-PABSON), demanded that the government amend its policy and allow the students who failed in major subjects to reappear in the chance exams.
“If the government changes its policy in that way, it will help to increase pass percentage of students and it will not let time and efforts of the students to go waste,” he added.
Officials, on their part, admit that they don’t have any concrete program to help the students who fail in the SLC.
When contacted by Nepalnews, spokesman at the Ministry of Education and Sports said that they did not have any programme to engage failed SLC students. “As it is a standard test they have to pass it for further education, or they can apply for courses offered by the Council of Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT),” he added.