The SLC debacle: Who is to blame?

SAMATA SHRESTHA

What has the results of School Leaving Certificate (SLC) brought this year? Have they brought laddus and ecstasy? No, they have brought disappointments resulting in suicides and depression. The 2068 SLC examination has shocked all and put many students on the verge of ‘nowhere’. Does that mean the hard-working students are at fault?

Some students had really worked hard, while some had not studied at all. But that does not mean the students are solely guilty. Who is to blame for the current political situation of Nepal? Who is to be blamed when schools were shut and even teachers called out a strike? Who is to be blamed when the Constitution was not formulated and students took the burden? Who is to be blamed when half of the SLC candidates failed? Who is to be blamed when all students are made to rote information from the first chapter to the last? All the blame comes to students — whether they tirelessly work or don’t aim to study at all.

Nepal still believes in rote learning. As a student, we know what we have to learn but then comes a reality check. We pinch ourselves and realise all these years of schooling went in vain. No, I don’t blame government schools, but the private schools have also not developed the education system. We have come to an era where knowledge is everything. Without good grades, you cannot earn your bread.

In this modern era, though students have almost every facility, they feel lazy and later weep at their outcome. In this case, students are to be blamed. But what about the rural areas of Nepal? It is not fair on them, is it?

The whole grading system seems in jeopardy here. Students are worried if the paper examiner’s mood is good or not. They are scared of their papers getting lost. There’s no security of exam papers. The time has come when we need insurance for SLC papers.

The conclusions of these exams are chaotic. First and foremost, the political situation should be stable.

Secondly, there should be drastic changes in the education sector — education should not be marks-centric, but it should always be knowledge-centric.

Thirdly, the syllabus of Nepal should be of international

standard.

The old times have gone, girls and boys are equal. As its clearly seen girls’ fail percentage is higher than that of boys, girls are still not permitted in good schools and given proper knowledge. And of course the students have to work hard not only in exam time but since the beginning. That sort of environment and facilities should be provided from childhood to increase the pass percentage.