You have gained a long experience in education sector and are currently leading Panini School for progressive education for the 21st century. However, the majority of public are totally oblivious of this concept. Could you share with us what is progressive education?
Progress(ive) is our everyday life and survival mechanism. Regarding education, it is an activity-based learning process that focuses on the physical, social, intellectual and spiritual development of learners. In other words, it is a continuous learning process that focuses on learners’ multiple capabilities and unique aptitude.
Every child has a unique aptitude and learning capacity. In this teaching and learning model, the learners learn through five senses. In this system of learning, learning competency is evaluated based on the overall performance of an individual learner. On the contrary, traditional education system evaluates a learner based on cognitive test which doesn’t measure the overall performance.
In the recent days, a widespread discussion is heard about progressive education and school in Nepal that befits the 21st century skills?
To what extent has progressive education approach become successful in your institution? Panini School has been established with a view to impart eastern knowledge integrating with 21st century’s digital learning. Eastern philosophy is the store of massive Knowledge. We transfer knowledge and motivate students to manifest it in their daily life. Panini curriculum is designed in such a way that explores multiple intelligence of our children. The knowledge is manifested through skills here. Since knowledge, skill and ethics are interwoven, they are reflected in their everyday life. In progressive education, each learner’s learning achievement is measured through several parameters.
In our experience, knowledge without ethical value is meaningless. Knowledge without skills and technology is incomplete. So, we have interlinked knowledge with skills, culture and technology that is reflected in practice. In other words, we link education with life focusing on practical orientation.
Your entailment in the private sector education and its umbrella organization N-PABSAN has been for long and you have noticed that private schools are struggling for their survival literally. As a maestro of private education sector and the past president of N-PABSAN, how would you assess the contributions of private schools?
Private schools have made invaluable contributions from both financial and academic perspectives. While analyzing from the financial point of view, private education sector has played a significant role in curtailing the huge investment of the government in education sector. Out of sixteen hundred billion (Arab) annual budget of the nation, the government has allocated as much as10%, i.e. 185 billion (arab) for the education sector. So, the budget is not sufficient for curtailing the dropout ratio of students and stopping them from going to foreign lands. If there were no private educational institutions in Nepal, the government would have to increase further 10% budget in this sector.
Similarly, private education sector has created job opportunities to a large number of population. A figure shows that more than 200 thousand teaching and non-teaching workforces are employed by private educational institutions throughout the country. In addition, from the perspectives of development and upliftment of education status of the nation, private education institutions have been producing globally competitive human resources.
Progressive education is possible in Nepal only when the involvement of private education sector is guaranteed. Education should not be completely free, but the government should ensure its quality.
How effective have you found the role of local government in terms of monitoring and evaluation?
In your experience, what should be done for further achievement? The monitoring and evaluation part of the local level government is not satisfactory; so, it should work further to empower its evaluation frameworks effectively. Still, the bureaucracy and ruling system is not free from the traditional unitary concept and political influence. So, autonomy should be given to the local government in real practice. More importantly, the leadership of local government should be qualified and visionary.
What suggestions would you like to convey to the parents and the students as the Principal of Panini School?
Panini School is the center for ideal education. Our school advocates that rich eastern knowledge, culture, civilization and ideology should be refined, reformed and introduced to Nepalese curricula. We believe that habit forms character. So, Panini encourages its students to build a good habit to ensure good character which leads them to acquire good fortune. Since the school owns a vegetarian cafeteria, it is trying to instill in the minds of students the benefits of being a vegetarian. So, I would like to convey the message to our valued parents and students as the Principal that we need your cooperation and unconditional support to achieve it.
