Bhaktapur NIST School is a progressive school committed to providing a value-based education with an emphasis on holistic development of young learners. The school has teamed up with Cambridge Assessment International Education (CAIE) in order to impart international quality education.
Dilip Rana is the Principal at Bhaktapur NIST School. He has a long experience of working on progressive education as the Principal at various progressive schools. He has shared his perspectives on progressive teaching-learning approach with College Readers. Excerpts:
You are trying to provide progressive education, aren’t you? Where did you get inspired from?
I always had a perspective on education different from other people. When I was in school myself, we never focused merely on the academic grade sheets; we also participated in a number of extracurricular activities. We also simultaneously handled cleaning, sewing, and such other tasks. In means we worked on both modest and large projects. This method of getting involved in all tasks produced excellent results. It aided in our claim of being all-arounders. When I look back at my college days, I was regarded as an ordinary student. Nevertheless, I had a much stronger foundation than the gold medalists did. I was fortunate to have access to the outdoor amenities at the disposal of my school. Similarly, I’ve always loved kids and I really like spending time with them. My entire family has a background in the medical industry. I still didn’t choose that route, though because that had absolutely nothing to do with my interests. Having strong dedications will allow us to achieve our goals. Any difficulties and obstacles can be overcome if we have the desire and the necessary will power.
You are advocating progressive education in its true spirit. How would you love to define progressive education?
In the modern world, almost everything involves competition. Everyone strives to be his or her best self in competition with others. In a competition, academic recognition alone does not help. Children may possess a variety of traits, including resilience, willingness to work with others, creativity, and ingenuity. Without the use of a progressive strategy, none of these features can be developed optimally. Children, who receive progressive education, are better able to identify and pursue their interests. So, in order to match their expectations and interests, schools have opened up new frontiers. In a word, progressive education is comprehensive education for kids, aimed at fostering their competence. This strategy promotes never giving up and viewing failure as an opportunity to get better. AI Artificial Intelligence) has pervaded across the entire world. It does every single thing that we should do on our own. So, at this time, even in the presence of AI, we need to be creative and work on our own. Artificial intelligence, or AI, now rules the whole planet. It performs each and every action that we should take independently. Because of this, we currently need to be more resourceful and independent workers.
Progressive education is considered to be more expensive than the general one because of its distinct features. What’s your view on this?
This completely misinterprets the meaning of progressive education. These days, Nepal is pricey in all areas, and we cannot dispute this. Comparing a field with other fields of similar nature and level should be the primary premise. In the past, we used to just offer a limited amount of teacher-centered education in a small space, but today we need to deliver all-round education in a child-centric manner through a variety of activities. Therefore, it is impossible to focus on every student in a small, cramped space. Running a school in the past did not require a football field, but nowadays every school has one. We require dozens of musical instruments only to teach music. Progressive education can also be handled in a straightforward manner. Teachers should possess the degree of proficiency required on an international scale in order to deliver progressive education. In order to offer all of these services, we must hire an equal number of people and train them as well. If that is the case, some mild fee should not be considered a serious issue.
What is the present condition of the schools working on progressive education under Quality Kathmandu School?
We are working with the same goal in mind. We joined Quality Kathmandu School so that we could assess our strengths and deficiencies. We also endeavor to share our strengths and strengthen our abilities to deal with our weakness. We provide our kids as many resources as we can so that they can participate in all the activities. It aids in the development of competence and self-control in our kids.
. What is your take on the fall in the number of students going abroad for higher education after the arrival of progressive education?
I went to India to further my education. Thus, I too serve as an example. When compared to Nepal those days, the level of progressive education abroad was much higher. Having realized this fact, we started endeavoring to provide progressive education here as well, modeling it after international education and drawing inspiration from it. At present, parents no longer feel obliged to send their children far from home because we have a lot of world-class schools in Nepal too. Some international students are studying in our school as well, because they are getting the same degree of education here. These days schools give students the chance of employment too. This has helped in the economic progress of individuals and the country too.
Education used to be thought of as the primary means of acquiring and passing on knowledge. But today’s education also emphasizes on include knowledge of technique, attitude, invention, and application. To what extent have you implemented these attributes at your institute?
We take everything very seriously. We have appointed various teachers and staff members to provide superior education. We have a big human resource base. Only two subjects are taught by an instructor. The school has a big team of teachers to ensure that pupils receive high-quality instruction and care. Additionally, we carry out a variety of activities for the benefit of the pupils. We also hold lectures, festivals, and rituals that aid in cultural understanding and education. Better creative knowledge and education for the kids is the sole and ultimate purpose of all these initiatives.
What are the distinct features provided by NIST School?
We are doing everything we can in our school to deliver high-quality education. One teacher only has two periods to teach. And I don’t think any other colleges have this facility. We fulfill all of our children’s needs. We also employ a pediatrician, a doctor, a nurse, and a counselor on a full-time basis.
Lastly, what message would you like to convey to parents and students?
I want to express my appreciation to our esteemed parents for their perspectives on education and for their decision to choose progressive education in favor of this children. I adore the fact that they look for schools where their kids are cared for rather than just focusing on academic success. We are attempting to instill discipline and positive attitude among our students, and the positive response and inputs from parents is very crucial for its success.
