Towards the development of Technology-based Educational Patterns

From left: Shyam Shrestha (Chairperson of Secondary level Thematic Committee in High Level Education Commission), Prof. Dr. Bhoj Raj Aryal (Professor at Central Department of Management), Baudha Raj Niraula (Head of Education Department from Shankharapur Municipality), Jitram Lama (President of NGO Federation of Nepal)

A Conference on Digital Math Education was organized by 'Kids of Kathmandu' and 'e-Education' with the support of JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) on 13th and 14th of June, 2019. This two-day event comprised of a panel discussion and socialization on the first day, and for the second day, a participative workshop was conducted.

The event raised crucial concerns regarding the education environment and changes in education patterns in response to technological environment. The government realizes the importance of technological advancements in the present world and its importance, and has been developing various schemes and models to integrate the use of technology in classroom lectures; for example, by providing various basic and proficient ICT courses. Introducing change in the educational environment needs time and acceptance, so it is not the reluctance of the government but the persistence of teachers on using the same old techniques. There is a lack of awareness about the importance and uses of ICT in education and everyday job which should be resolved, and the sooner it is done, the better.

But availability still remains a big question in most rural places; it is predominantly non-existent where absence of electricity poses as a barrier to ICT access. There are cases where misuse (and even absence of any use) has been witnessed. For these cases where abundant availability has failed to deliver desired results, changes shall be brought in the scheme, and the teachers who come with no preparation and lack any training on integrating ICT facility in lectures and with little to no motivation, need to create a creative engaging technique and give prior importance to student engagement. Some arguments suggest that the lack of rural school teachers is what drives the deterioration of quality education. Others object that it is not the lack of teachers but a lack of management. A solution for this issue demands availability of qualified teachers, removal of inexperienced teachers and ICT training to motivated teachers.

There are 3 fundamental factors that drives an effective incorporation of ICT in schools: modern technology, access to technology and learning attitude in teachers. Quite often professionals are well adjusted about the results, but minimum urgency is given to understanding the causes behind them. In many instances there has been questions concerning the gap between public and private schools. One major reason creating this gap is when the teachers pay less attention to the psychology of students and how their teaching methodology affects the attention span of their students.

The second day engaged all the participants in a participatory workshop schedule where the groups were assigned with respective topics and worked out possible solutions. The topic during the day discussed about utilizing, implementing and maximizing the use of video lectures in class, issues and its solutions to expand the reach of video lectures where most needed, and how to use ICT facility. The event successfully delivered rigorous insights from our panelists and all the participants during the workshop, which will further assist in improving the methodology of the entire process.

Kids of Kathmandu is a non-profit organization working for the betterment of marginalized and disadvantaged group of children.

Dress codes in School

School uniforms have proven to have benefits to the students. It prevents the hassle of deciding what to wear each morning, eradicates bullying based on outfits, reduces the stark difference in class, promotes school spirit, etc. But has the purpose of uniforms been twisted in modern times?

Many schools these days seem to care more about the students’ dress codes than required. I remember many times in middle school when I was publicly pulled out of assembly and threatened to be sent home because my hair was in one ponytail instead of two, or when I was missing a ribbon. Schools are really strict when it comes to these trivial issues, so much so that they have actually sent students home for having a slightly incorrect uniform. While I understand that maintaining discipline in schools is important and uniform also comes under that umbrella, schools should also be aware of the kind of message they are sending their students. I’m sure my school thought they were telling me to be careful about my appearance and stay neat and tidy while they threatened to send me home for a missing ribbon; but what I actually heard was “your one ribbon can ruin an entire school day because we care about your uniform more than your education”. I’m pretty sure this was not the intended message, but when I think back to those days, I am sure that I was not alone in feeling that. My friends used to be deathly afraid of the principal, not because he would reprimand them for their discipline or grades, but because he would yell at them and humiliate them for their uniform. Even back then, I knew that is not the kind of impression an educational professional should be leaving on their students. Students should not be afraid that their teacher might embarrass them in front of their peers for having their uniform slightly out of order. In fact, students should not be afraid that their teacher will embarrass them at all.

This is not an isolated issue either, instead, it is a part of a much larger problem. The way I see it, schools these days are excessively strict in disciplinary issues than academic. Teachers are more bothered by how long students’ nails are than how good their grades are. While issues like this should not be trivialized by any chance, is it really more important than a students’ education? Is a slight incorrect uniform really worth telling the students that they cannot study at all that day? Is that the message educational institutes want to put out there?

Priorities of schools do not seem to be in order. If schools start punishing students by suspension for having a slightly incorrect uniform, then these are the values children will grow up with. They will start believing that their education is expendable. This is especially true for girls. Girls who are punished for having a skirt that's half an inch shorter than the requirement, girls who are accused of ‘showing too much skin’ when all they’ve done is wear what wouldn't raise any eyebrows if worn by boys. Will the school take responsibility if a girl grows up believing that how short her skirt is more important than how educated she is? 

While it is the responsibility of schools to turn students into well-rounded individuals and uniforms are somewhat a part of that, I don't think that unless a student has violated major dress code by going out of their way to disobey school rules or it’s a matter of repeated personal hygiene, the school should not interfere in how a student presents themselves.  They can discipline a student if they wear an entirely differently colored shirt than the uniform, but they shouldn’t make it a big deal if a student accidentally forgets to cut their hair and promises to cut it during the weekend. And even if the student has violated the major dress code, schools should be mindful of what action they take. The punishment should never make students feel like their appearance is in any way of more priority than their education. While a school has many responsibilities to fulfill, it should not be at the expense of their main responsibility, which is educating its students.

Written by: Saisha Dixit (Canopy Nepal)

Edited by: Sabanam Thapa (Canopy Nepal)

Canopy Nepal is a team of visionary youths working in the field of education, skill and leadership development, diversity and inclusion. We seek to improve the quality and efficiency of education by focusing on the learners and reshaping the way they learn.

Education for children with learning disabilities

Nepalese society has indeed made some strides in terms of recognizing mental illnesses, but it still has ways to go when it comes to learning disabilities. Many children suffering from learning disabilities such as dyslexia, ADHD, autism, etc. are completely ignored by the educational system and simply deemed as ‘lazy’ or ‘unwilling to work’ by the people around them. This is a major issue that has been swept under the rug for years instead of being dealt with.

Children with learning disabilities cannot function under the same conditions as children with no mental issues, or neurotypical children. They need special equipment, special environment, and special care. The caretakers should be specially trained to handle children with learning disabilities. In fact, not even all learning disabilities are same; autism, for example, is a very broad term for an array of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behavior, speech, and nonverbal communication. Autistic children are more vulnerable and are relatively easy targets for bullies. An article published in January 2019 discusses how a teacher in Florida was found abusing two autistic children by locking them in a dark bathroom or blowing loud a whistle in their ear as punishment. This happened in the United States, which is supposed to be more developed than Nepal. If this behavior is seen even in first world countries, then how are children with learning disabilities living in Nepal supposed to be hopeful? How can they anticipate a change? It is not just a national problem, but a global one.

In order to bring this issue to light in the Nepalese society, we must first acknowledge that it exists instead of turning a blind eye towards it. No change happens overnight. We can’t expect special learning schools to be constructed immediately, but we can hope that schools start to recognize that some students suffer from these conditions and prepare a curriculum suitable for them. Hiring counselors and consultants who are educated in this area can also be extremely helpful. Other children should also be educated so that they don’t view their classmates with learning disabilities as ‘lesser than’ or a ‘freak’. They should be aware that having a learning disability is like having any other disability and that a person suffering from one is still deserving of friendship and respect. We should try our very best as to not make special needs children feel like they are ‘different’. Children with special needs often have the same brain functionality as developing children, even though they are not equipped with the tools to express that. This is why talking down on them or making fun of them can be detrimental to their health. They feel the same emotions as neurotypical children, but the degree in which they do can vary depending on what disability they have.

Treating all disabilities as the same is also a common mistake. All children with learning disabilities cannot be helped with the same tools. For example, a child with Asperger’s cannot be treated using the same tools as a child with dyslexia. They are radically different issues and affect children differently.

The stigma not only exists in schools however, children might also face problems at home.  As a society, we are not educated enough about learning disabilities. Some parents may not be aware that their child may be suffering from one and might assume that their child is making excuses not to study. We can raise awareness among families. We can start campaigns that raise awareness of learning disabilities. This is not a solid solution to this widespread problem, but it is a start. We have to make strides in reducing the stigma as it is the root of all problems. We have to make sure that children who suffer from these disabilities are not discriminated against or treated with any less respect than ‘normal’ children. 

Right now, all we can do is start somewhere. Start at grassroots levels to ensure that special needs children will one day have the same privileges as neurotypical children. Start to make them believe that the system is not inherently rigged against them. 

Written by: Saisha Dixit (Canopy Nepal)

Edited by: Sabanam Thapa (Canopy Nepal)

Canopy Nepal is a team of visionary youths working in the field of education, skill and leadership development, diversity and inclusion. We seek to improve the quality and efficiency of education by focusing on the learners and reshaping the way they learn.