Students prepare for SEE, Madhes Govt steps in to improve results

By Vijay Kumar Sah, Dhalkeber, Feb. 25: Thousands of students in Madhes Province are preparing for the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) 2025. Following the completion of their internal assessments, students are now focused on intense study, with the exams set to begin on March 20. 

Recent statistics, however, reveal a declining educational standard in Madhes Province. In 2024 only 27,306 of 79,592 students passed the SEE in the province, highlighting a worrying trend, particularly in community schools.

In 2024, only 19 of 169 students from Mahendra Secondary School in Dhanusha’s Mithila Municipality-5 passed the SEE. Headmaster Ram Kumar Mahato, said free coaching classes focusing on mathematics, science, English, and social studies have been launched, with teachers dedicating extra time to help students improve their SEE results this time. 

In response, the Madhes government plans to deploy 132 volunteer teachers to help boost results in four key subjects. Chief Minister Satish Kumar Singh emphasised that a lack of subject-specific teachers and insufficient staffing has weakened the system. He said that the new initiative of deploying volunteers aims to address this issue.

Education expert Dr. Vinay Kusiyat highlighted the shortage of teachers, lack of resources and poor infrastructure as major factors affecting learning outcomes. He said that improvement in teaching methods and teacher capacity is imperative to secure better results. 

Meanwhile, Meghnath Yadav of the Nepal Teachers’ Union pointed out the imbalance in teacher-student ratios across schools, while Rajkishore Mahato from Bateshwar blamed declining educational standards on local government mismanagement and political interference.

Dr. Sohan Sah, Vice-Chair of the Provincial Policy and Planning Commission, stressed that only through coordinated efforts between students, teachers, parents, school management committees, local governments and the provincial government can the quality of education improve.