By Sampada Anuranjanee Khatiwada

Kathmandu, June 16: Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has said that the government had introduced alternative learning methods for school going students amid the nationwide lockdown and looming threat of COVID-19 infection.
In a televised address to the nation regarding resumption of studies for school-level students in a new way on Monday, the PM said, “Schools are communal learning places with gathering of teachers and students. Thus, the threat of virus transmission is higher in schools and teachers, volunteers, and guardians should be careful about the safety of our children.”
After 83 days into the lockdown, the government has introduced alternative schemes to ensure that the students continue learning and to mitigate the impact of lockdown on learning pattern, the PM added.
Extending best wishes to all children on introduction of alternative learning system, PM Oli said, “Along with the challenges, the COVID-19 pandemic has also offered us some opportunities. Even though schools and live classes cannot be operated, the government has presented self-study materials via radio, television, online and offline mediums to give continuity to academic learning.”
He said that technology was reaching every house and urged everyone to effectively use it as a new opportunity.
All school-going children should move forward as a generation used to new technologies rather than being introduced as the children who lost an academic year to the coronavirus, added PM Oli.
Students classified according to their access to technology
“While saying this, I have also taken into consideration the current situation of our nation. Our nation isn’t equally developed in all places; technology has not reached each and every house and the quality of teaching and learning isn’t balanced everywhere,” the PM said.
Thus, while issuing the directive to facilitate learning via alternative method, the government has taken into account the access of local levels and schools to the sources of learning. The students are identified and classified accordingly, he added.
According to the PM, for students who lack an access to technology and all kinds of

communication media, classroom education will be continued providing them with learning materials. For those who have access to radios, self-study materials would be provided via radio programmes.
Likewise, for students who have access to television, classes will be taken via televised programmes, he said, adding offline learning materials would be provided to students having computer facilities and for those with an access to internet and all kinds of communication facilities, online classes will be run.
PM Oli also said that the possibility of changes had increased in education system in post-COVID-19 days. “The pandemic has inspired us to look for alternative to Secondary School Examination (SEE),” said the PM.
Students constitute nation’s future
Moreover, PM Oli said that today’s students were the vanguards of tomorrow. “Expenses made for education of students, whether personal or governmental, are the investment for future,” the PM said.
Thus, all students should utilise their learning and skills to empower themselves and give back to the society.
He urged all the students to be qualified to compete with the rest of the world. “All students must be well informed about the contemporary issues and world affairs. They should know about the cultural, political and economic regime of the nation.” PM Oli added.
Stating that illiterate manpower was unskilled manpower, the PM pledged that today’s manpower should be healthy, literate, and competent.
The PM highlighted that the schools would be reopened as soon as the threat of virus subsided.
“Until we get back to normalcy, the alternative learning methods will play an important role in educating the students and prevent wasting an entire academic year,” he added.
PM Oli also stated that the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology was striving to manage all education materials as soon as possible. “Development of new education materials, their distribution and use will continue in the days ahead,” he said.
Stating that remote learning was a new mode of study for everyone, the PM urged all guardians, teachers and volunteers to help children to benefit from new mode of learning.
Likewise, Minister for Education, Science and Technology Giriraj Mani Pokharel said that the learning continuity campaign was meant to mitigate COVID-19 impact on education sector. He asked everyone to turn every child’s home into a learning centre during this period.
The Ministry had issued “Directives on Student’s Learning Facilitation through Alternative Media, 2077” two weeks ago for the management of children’s learning activities.
According to the directives, the federal, state and local governments and schools have to coordinate to reach the students through different mediums. The government targeted to reach the school students through different alternative media like online, offline, radio, television, print, according to access of technology to the students.
As per the directives the Ministry started to deliver the classes for school children from Radio Nepal, NTV plus, Dish Home, Net TV, and Max TV. And, the Ministry has also launched a learning portal named https://learning.cehrd.edu.np/ for the students having internet access.
In the video announcement, Minister Pokharel requested the state and local governments across the country to prepare materials by using local teachers and disseminate them among the students.