Making educational advancements


NEPALI students have been performing exceedingly well in the AS and A Levels exams, and have repeatedly produced exceptional results in the same.These outstanding student achievers are awarded every year during the Outstanding Cambridge Learner Awards organised by Cambridge International Examinations and The British Council. Students who attain the highest marks within the country in particular subjects are also awarded. If past trends are to be analysed, Nepali students have not only adjusted to the international curriculum, but have shown that they are perfectly competent and able to attain remarkable results. A dozen Nepali students have become the highest world scorers till date.Abhimanyu Chhetri of Chelsea International School,Anoj Shahi of King’s College, Risav Karna of Saipal Academy, Byanjana Thapa of Rato Bangla and Ingroj Shrestha of Kathmandu Academy are all world toppers. So are Shitoshna Nepal, Apoorva Lal, Shashank Sharma, Niraj Parajuli and Soul Raj Jhoshi (all from Rato Bangla School) and Samip Baral of Gems Institute of Higher Education.


OVER half a million students sat for the School Leaving Certificate (SLC) examinations this year. While some may have planned out their career, it is more likely that most of them are yet to decide on what they want to do in their lives. With many alternatives for a post-SLC degree now emerging, students and parents find themselves confused over what is the best and most suitable option for them. SLC graduates often tend to join +2 programmes, affiliated to the Higher Secondary Education Board, or take technical subjects under the Centre for Technical Education and Vocational Training, but most students who want an international pre-university education have the option of pursuing the General Certificate in Education Advanced Levels (GCE A Levels) or the International Baccalaureate (IB). The credit of starting the University of Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) affiliated GCE A Levels gœs to Budhanilkantha school which began offering the programme in 1985. Although the A Level programme has long existed in the awareness of Nepalis, it wasn’t accessible to all, limited as it was to Budhanilkantha for over a decade. The diploma became more widely available in the early 2000s when a handful of private schools started offering it to their students. What was initially adopted keeping in mind children of expatriates has now become a popular choice of post-SLC diploma for Nepal’s middle class. Many educationists have chosen it as the higher secondary level degree for their schools in order to provide a strong pre-university foundation for their students. In the last decade, the number of institutions offering A Levels has gone up to 40, with some dozen more waiting for permission from the Ministry of Education. The degree, which was earlier confined to schools in Kathmandu, is now available in Pokhara, Chitwan and Biratnagar as well. “People have begun to understand that the A Levels is the most rigorous programme that delivers high academic standards and it’s becoming increasingly popular outside the Capital,” said Nabin Man Shrestha, chairperson of the Cambridge Educators Association Nepal and principal of AJW College. Although the A Levels are comparatively more expensive to undertake, students from financially disadvantaged The A Levels have now become a popular choice of post-SLC diploma for Nepal's middle class
disadvantaged backgrounds can also avail of the 10 percent scholarship quota allocated as per government rules. Currently, over 150 students of a total of around 1,500 pursuing their A Levels have been doing so under scholarship programmes. “We offer higher scholarships to students based on their financial abilities and strength in academics,” said Sudhir Jha, founding chairman at Chelsea International College. The CIE A Levels are internationally benchmarked qualifications that provide an excellent preparation for university education. They are taken in around 190 countries and offer a choice of about 70 different subjects. The culminating certificate is one of the most internationally recognised qualifications at the higher secondary level. “While our local higher secondary school curriculum promotes memorising, the A Levels courses are knowledgebased and more pragmatic,” said Susma Sapkota, programme coordinator at Global College International. Educators claim that the programme emphasises critical thinking and reasoning abilities. Additionally, A Levels teachers are trained and updated every year. The CIE also provides training for teachers twice a year. Taught in over 6,000 colleges across the globe, the programme is updated regularly to maintain its relevance—which is also the most effective part of the curriculum. Students in most institutions
institutions in Nepal are required to take three full credit subjects along with a half credit language course or General Paper. The examinations are held in May/June and October/November and results are published 

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