Many public schools, formerly called Nepali medium schools, have started conducting classes in English medium as well. Though it has helped those schools to increase or retain students, the noticeable discrimination between Nepali and English medium students and teachers has exacerbated the already existing social division.

The students taking Nepali medium classes are taught all subjects, including English, in Nepali language. Whereas the students in English medium classes are taught in English by a separate group of teachers. In a case study, I found that the two different groups of students and teachers have different (almost opposite) mindsets. The English medium teachers and their students feel superior to their Nepali medium counterparts. On the other hand, the Nepali medium teachers and their students feel inferior and discriminated against. If this sentiment persists, it will affect society at large, potentially challenging the national harmony in the future.

Public or community schools in Nepal are believed to have started adopting English as a medium of instruction (EMI) after the introduction of the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) in 2007. The framework, for the first time, allowed community schools to choose Nepali, English or both as the school-level medium of instruction. However, a large number of public schools adopted EMI as a trend after 2010.

EMI in community schools

The reason why community schools adopted EMI was to retain their sharply declining student population, as middle- and upper-class parents were attracted to private/institutional schools as English medium schools. The parents wanted their children to be proficient in English to compete globally. The flash report 2081 (2024-25) published by the Centre for Education and Human Resource Development (CEHRD) has recorded approximately 35, 447 schools in Nepal. Among them, 27,298 (77 percent) are community and religious schools, and 8,149 (23 percent) are institutional schools (boarding schools). The report also shows that 429 community schools closed down within a year, i.e., 2023-24-2024-25; whereas 263 new boarding schools started operation in that period. This means a large number of students quit community schools for English medium schools.

The pressing parental demand for EMI in community schools is another factor in the increase in EMI in such schools. Even parents in the lower-middle and lower economic spectrum, who cannot afford the high fees of private schools, perceived EMI in public schools as a way to secure their children’s future opportunities. Proficiency in English is believed to be essential for a successful career, higher education and a better life.

The promulgation of the 2015 Constitution further spiked the EMI trend in community schools. Local units, empowered by the constitution, started to manage local education. Many local bodies issued their own decisions to transform their community schools into English medium due to pressure from parents and students. Many school management committees (SMCs) supported EMI to improve the school’s reputation. Since most of this change has been unplanned, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) does not have any official record about how many community schools are currently running English medium classes.

Effects of EMI

EMI has brought more challenges than opportunities to community schools. First, although it was introduced with the aim of bridging the knowledge gap, it has exacerbated inequality. Second, community school students receive low-quality education in the name of English medium due to the incompetence of teachers. Since the majority of English-medium teachers in community schools lack English proficiency, they cannot teach complex subjects effectively without code-switching, leading them to teach students in an exam-focused manner. On the other hand, students from well-to-do families have access to high-quality English medium education. As a result, the community schools’ students have a poor conceptual understanding of subjects like science and maths.

Third, EMI in community schools also overshadows and marginalises local and indigenous languages and their cultural heritages. The superiority of English undermines the value of local languages in the eyes of the students, resulting in their erosion over time. Similarly, students with low confidence in English suffer from a language barrier, losing their self-esteem. They are hesitant to participate, ask questions and fully express themselves in the class.

Despite all these harms, EMI will also have some positive effects if implemented with its true spirit. Since English is a lingua franca, proficiency in it will provide better job opportunities globally to competent individuals. Even the lower-income students will have the opportunity to have an English education at a low cost. So, it will help reduce socio-economic disparity caused by the institutional schools. Moreover, the students can access vast educational resources with their knowledge of the language.

It is high time the government intervened with a rigorous policy on EMI. There should be policies for attracting bright minds to the teaching profession. If not, EMI will result in a significant pedagogical crisis due to the lack of teachers’ proficiency, teaching materials and a clear policy on multilingualism. Without proper intervention, the present trend will only produce students with poor content knowledge and low self-esteem.