Less than 100 students in over 50 percent community schools

KATHMANDU, JULY 10: More than 50 per cent of the community schools in the country have less than 100 students, according to a report recently made public by the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology.

The report – Educational Information, 2080 BS – stated that the number of community schools with less than 100 students is 15,965. This is despite ongoing efforts from governmental and non-governmental sectors to improve public education. The number of public schools with less than 100 students is 57.03 percent of all the 27,990 community schools throughout the country.

According to the report, this situation is attributable to the decline in population, the increase in migration, and the influence of private schools in urban areas.

The number of community schools with less than 100 students was 14,000 in the fiscal year 2076/77 BS. This number has increased despite the operation of the 'school merger' policy.

The report indicates that the number of community schools having 100 to 500 students is 9,704, schools with 500 to 1,000 students is 1,636, schools with 1,000 to 1,500 students is 409, schools with 1,501 to 2,000 students is 136, and the number of community schools with more than 2,000 students is 100.

A total of 35,876 schools (from Basic level to Class 12), including 27,990 community schools and 7,886 institutional (private) schools, are in operation in the country at present.