Organisations working in the education sector have suggested the government scrap the secondary education examinations and the tests for grade 11 and 12 and promote the students through internal evaluation amid uncertainty over resumption of schools due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Secondary Education Examinations or SEE scheduled for March 19 was postponed for indefinitely five days before the government on March 24 imposed a lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19. It is uncertain when the 482,219 student, who had registered for the examination, will be sitting for the test.

Similarly, the tests for grade 11 and 12 that were slated to commence on April 20 too have been postponed. Records at the National Examination Board show over 962,000 students were supposed to sit for their annual tests.

The National Campaign for Education, an association of over 300 organisations involved in the education sector, said the government should allow the respective schools and the subject teachers to evaluate their students.
“As the tests for the SEE and grades 11 and 12 are uncertain we urge for grading the performance of the students through internal evaluation,” reads a letter issued by the campaign.

The students from class one to nine graduate to the higher grades through internal examinations but the students from grade 10 and above have to face national board exams to graduate.

Officials at the board, however, say it is not possible to certify the students through internal evaluation.

“There is a reason for holding the broad examinations which cannot be changed abruptly,” Chandra Mani Poudel, chairperson of the board, told the Post. “Allowing internal evaluation will raise questions over accreditation.”
He argues that graduation certificates need to be recognised at home and abroad. The certificates provided without holding proper tests cannot have validation, he adds.

Poudel said the examinations for the three grades could be held a couple of weeks after the lockdown is lifted.

The lockdown has been extended until April 27 and it is almost sure that the academic institutions are not going to function even if the lockdown is lifted partially.

The campaign has also suggested the government allocate necessary budget to equip the schools technically and train the teachers for online education.

“The government needs to train the teachers in use of technology so that they can teach the students remotely,” the campaign said.

While promoting online and technology based education, the campaign has stressed that it is crucial to consider the needs of a large number of students in rural Nepal who do not have access to computers and internet service.

The Ministry of Education has formed a panel to suggest the government for providing online education as the schools and colleges across the nation continue to remain shut due to the threat of the coronavirus.

There are around seven million students at the school level and around 500,000 at the university level.