ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

In pursuit of a decision by the Council of Ministers, the Hon’ble Prime Minister issued an Executive Order on 1 November 2006 establishing a 10-member Education Sector Review Commission to examine Bhutan’s education sector. This was to serve as “a comprehensive sector-wide reform and development measure.” At the outset, therefore, we wish to convey our most sincere gratitude to the Council of Ministers for the confidence reposed in us to undertake this very important review. This was the first comprehensive review of its kind, and the task was heavy. Nevertheless, we hope that despite any shortcomings in the report, we have not failed in setting a precedent for such timely reviews of the most important sector in the Royal Government – education.

During our yearlong tenure, this Commission was privileged to have interactions with scores of people, too numerous to mention by name. To all those who generously shared their views and experiences, we extend our heartfelt thanks. We would like to express appreciation to all students and teachers in 13 districts and more than 30.schools who participated in the survey. We hope that our report will give voice to their honest expressions and their pleas for intervention to optimise their teaching/learning experiences. We also would like to extend our gratitude to the head teachers, principals and teachers, staff and District Education Officers and Education Monitoring Officers who kindly facilitated our work and shared their perceptions and experiences. Our own insights and understanding of the day-to-day struggles, triumphs and hopes in the schools were sensitised by the articulation of all those who shared the larger collective experience of Bhutanese education.

We were overwhelmed by the interest, concern and goodwill shown by numerous people for improvement of the quality of education in the country. Gratitude is expressed to those teachers, parents and concerned citizens, expatriates, consultants and scholars in Bhutan, as well as those outside the country, who shared their time, experiences and expert insights.

We extend special thanks to those who went out of their way to write papers incorporated in the Commission’s report, voluntarily or on request. Special mention must be made of Dr. David Fulton, Assistant Director of the Office of School Character and Culture in the Denver Public Schools in Denver, Colorado, in the United States, who came to Bhutan to assist the Commission pro bono. He was with the Commission for an entire month and helped to conduct and analyse the study on school culture.

Our work would have not been possible without the confidence and continuous encouragement we received from Dasho Dr. Pema Thinley, former Secretary of Education. We are gratified by the interest shown in our work by the present Secretary of Education, Aum Sangay Zam. Thanks are extended to Mr. Tsewang Tandin, Director of the Department of School Education, who eased our logistical and official procedures within the education system. Gratitude also is due to Dasho Zangley Dukpa, former Vice Chancellor of the Royal University of Bhutan, and Dr. Jagar Dorji, former Director of Sherubtse College, who helped us to sharpen our focus on higher education. Mr. Rinchen Samdrup, Planning Officer in the Ministry of Education, and Ms. Tshering Wangmo, are likewise gratefully acknowledged for facilitating financial and budgetary matters and for organisational and secretarial support respectively.

Preface

Although we have made rapid strides in the fields of education and human resources development, there is still a long way to go before our nation is equipped with the human resources required to sustain the process of development. The nation’s skills base is extremely narrow, and just over one-half of our population can be considered literate and numerate. Although we can draw satisfaction from the rapid growth in primary and secondary school enrolment, the high dropout and repeater rates provide genuine cause for concern. Less then one-half of all those who enter primary school actually complete primary education, while less than 40 percent of young people of secondary school age are actually in secondary education, and a large number will fail to complete it.

Bhutan 2020 A Vision for Peace, Prosperity and Happiness

Since the release of the Bhutan 2020 vision document in 1999, considerable progress has been made in expanding schooling and tertiary education in the country. The number of schools, educational institutes and centres reached 1,666 by 2007, with a student population of 189,259 (excluding Bhutanese students outside the country). Nevertheless, this Commission has anticipated that, as in many developing counties, issues of efficiency, quality and learner achievement will grow – but with the right kinds of inputs, these issues can be resolved within the system we already have.

There was, however, no way the Commission could have fathomed the depth and complexity of challenges emanating from the current status of education and human resources:

1. Bhutan is a young country, with 59 percent of its population younger than 25; 42 percent below 15; and 30 percent younger than 10. Given such demographic characteristics, youth unemployment, already estimated at 3 percent in 2005, seems inevitable. Paradoxically, however, there exists a shortage of skilled manpower in every sector of the economy. As such, youth unemployment – often a result of poor schooling – is a matter of the highest concern. For every 100 PP children only around 85 continue to lower secondary level (Classes VII and VIII), and an even smaller number studies further. Discontinuation of education leads to an accumulation of job seekers at the bottom of the education pyramid, as well as the immediate fallout of low skills levels among the working youth population. Reversing that skills deficit requires nothing less than reinventing the system.

2. Bhutan also is on the cusp of joining the World Trade Organization, and in the new dynamics of globalisation, a national workforce will need strong skills in mathematics, science and technology, and literacy. Moreover, this is not just for top professionals and managers: Such needs will extend through the length and breadth of the workforce. By 2010, even India will require additional skilled manpower amounting to 8,50,000. Even more surprisingly, by 2020 the shortage of skilled

3. professionals is expected to reach 40 million in developed countries. 1 Thus, the inescapable conclusion is that the quality of education of a work force will matter even more than the quantity. Indeed, a study undertaken in the United State shows that a difference of one standard deviation in mathematic and science scores is related to a 1 percent difference in annual per-capita GDP growth. It is, therefore, alarming that Bhutan has neither a large enough workforce nor one that is well-endowed educationally or with regard to skills. If the current educational trends continue, by the end of the Tenth Five Year Plan in 2013, 51 percent of Bhutan’s labour force, at best, will have acquired primary education.

Given the above circumstances, what is the way forward? To begin with, we must get it right from the start, taking an important initiative toward qualitative and systemic improvements in education. To put it simply, we must pursue “Education Without Compromise.” This represents a call for:

1. Urgently transforming the education system to achieve radical improvements in educational outputs of Bhutanese students. Such goal-setting draws its aspiration from His Majesty the King’s address to the graduates of 2007: “It is no longer enough to say, ‘I am the best in Bhutan, ” His Majesty declared. “I expect you to be the best wherever you go in this world.” Moreover, this goal forces the necessary thinking about how to achieve quantum improvements in students’ academic achievements. But urgency is imperative; urgency is about execution.

2. Integrating the linkages among early childhood care and education, primary, secondary and non-formal education. While much can be done within each of these components, a great deal more can be accomplished through an acrossthe-board integration of efforts. In the process, this will build a sound foundation for improving the quality of tertiary education.

Executive Summary

If present trends continue, at the end of the Tenth Five Year Plan (2013) the level of education of 51 percent of the nation’s workforce will be at or below Class VI – even as the economy further integrates into the globalised world. This is, however, a world in which a very high level of preparation in reading, writing, mathematics, science and literature will be indispensable for most members of the workforce. Thus, every working person in future generations will have to be much more productive than this generation, and children more productive than their parents. The challenge is not just about reversing trends in the education system: To quote His Majesty the King, we will “have to build a strong education system.” After extensively reviewing the education system, this Commission hopes that “Education Without Compromise” can help to create such a system that will educate Bhutanese students to world-class levels.

Overall, Bhutan has made great strides in education since its initiation in the country some four decades ago. At the same time, many issues remain to be addressed. We found, for example, that only 215 Bhutanese children are benefiting from the crucial intervention of Early Childhood Care and Education, even though high-quality ECCE is one of the best investments a nation can make in its young people. No national policy currently exists in the country on ECCE. The concept of pre-primary, or “PP,” in the country contrasts with international standards by tending strongly toward formal school experience – it is actually part of primary education – rather than developing school readiness.

Significant efforts will be needed to achieve University Primary Education by 2015; this will mean, at a minimum, enrolling all children of the officially prescribed age (6 years) in the 2009 school year. But this will not be easy, for numerous reasons: About 16,500 children of primary school age remain out of school, with primary dropout and repetition rates encompassing more than 10 percent of students. All this adds to illiteracy and indicates a high level of children who are not mastering the curriculum. Alarmingly, mean test scores in literacy and numeracy are very low, and the “learning rate” is so slow that an extra year in each grade is required to reach the average competency for that grade. Urban students’ better performance in all areas means that the system must be made more effective in reducing inequalities of educational opportunity.

Turning to secondary education (lower, middle and higher secondary as a whole), the situation is similar but challenges are even more pronounced. Barely 85 out of every 100 students enrolled in primary education progress to lower and middle secondary school – and of the latter, only a smaller number proceeds to higher secondary. Gender differences begin to show up, and average Class X test scores in English and maths are startlingly low. Only around 35 percent of Class XII students score high enough to be selected for admission to tertiary institutes – yet the cut off point is usually even lower than 60 percent, itself considered the bare minimum for satisfactory performance. At all levels, learning occurs within what this Commission found to be a “culture of passivity”. We strongly urge shifting from a culture of fear to a culture of engagement in classrooms; creating a culture of reading in schools; and strengthening both teacher in-service training and access to best practices.

In tertiary education, we found that Sherubtse College, the pinnacle of learning in the country, appears at risk of sliding into becoming a mediocre institution. In general, students do not seem fully engaged in learning, working only hard enough to score the 40 percent needed to pass. Accountability is weak for lecturers and students alike. Many buildings and classrooms are in disrepair, and faculty trust and professional morale are both low. Quality assurance of tertiary education as a whole is constrained by the fact that tertiary institutions’ missions are not well-aligned with long-term human resource development needs of the country, including that of the private sector, and that institutions suffer an acute shortage of qualified teaching staff, with no agreed performance indicators. Expansion of the pilot Continuing Education Programme is an urgent priority; high costs in so doing may be offset by “piggybacking” on educational and training services for adults in India.

The overwhelming conclusion from these analyses is that radical improvement is indispensable to achieve a quantum improvement in educational outputs and strengthen competitiveness of Bhutan’s economy in the globalised world. Bearing this in mind, this Commission has proposed seven strategies aimed at building a sound framework to educate Bhutanese to world-class levels. Intended to stimulate debate on the quality of education in the country, these recommendations have been drawn from reports and best practices of nations around the world with the best education systems. The seven strategies are:

Strategy 1:

Adopt international benchmarks for educating Bhutanese students and establish achievement levels against those standards.

Adopting International Standards

This would involve:

• Setting the standards of the board examinations, namely, BCSC for Class X and BHSEC for Class XII at the expectations incorporated in the examinations administered by the best-performing nations in the world such as Singapore and Finland.

• Overhauling the school curriculum including the current system of accessing students’ achievements to best fit the expectations mentioned above.

Establishing students’ achievement levels

In primary education, the above would involve drawing from the concept incorporated in the Minimum Levels of Learning model of India. In secondary education, a new BCSE examination for Class X would be established at international standards, with students able to take the test repeatedly. Results of the BCSE would lead to two “streaming” programmes to be created at higher secondary level, an Upper Secondary Academic Programme, providing demanding college preparation courses, and a Technical Preparation Programme, allowing students to sample a range of technical and occupational programmes. This would provide an opportunity for less capable students to develop at their own pace. A new BHSEC for Class XII at international expectations also would be established in order to qualify for enrolment in tertiary education.

Strategy 2:

Improve teachers’ quality by transforming their compensation system and restructuring teacher recruitment and education

Teachers’ salaries would be performance-based, as measured against students’ test achievements; this would mean moving away from compensation based on years of service. Teachers also could be tested every five years, with those who fail at risk of losing their jobs. Extra compensation would be provided for senior and experienced teachers willing to be posted in remote areas or in schools where there are recruiting problems, as well as for those willing to teach in subject areas with shortages, such as mathematics and science. Creation of an autonomous Agency for Teacher Development (ATD), vested with a mission to recruit and retain the best and brightest as teachers, would allow teachers to be de-linked from the civil service. Offering salaries at levels comparable to better-paid professionals in the country, the ATD could recruit candidates from the Government, army, or good teachers who had gone on to other careers. It would reinstate the practice of recruiting expatriate teachers as “permanent employees,” rather than on short-term contracts. Lastly, the ATD could write performance contracts with the two Colleges of Education for training of teacher trainees, and could cancel these contracts if trainees do not meet performance criteria.

Strategy 3:

Provide high-quality, universal Early Childhood Education.

Urgent policy and operational decisions should be taken to develop a national policy on Early Childhood Care and Education, including adopting an ECCE curriculum possibly based on the Singapore model. De-linking pre-primary (PP) from primary education would keep all young children aged 3 to 6 years out of the formal education sphere; participation of 3- and 4-year-olds in pre-primary education could be voluntary, but should be mandatory for 5- and 6-year-olds in order to enroll in Class I. Ideally, the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children would be covered by the entire four-year programme. Criteria for ECCE staff should be established, and community-based programmes may be considered. Coverage and quality of Non-Formal Education (NFE) should be increased, targeted at the poorest young mothers, in recognition of the fact that educated mothers serve as a “multiplier” for children’s education.

Strategy 4: Achieve Universal Primary Education.

Efforts toward achieving UPE can be targeted toward out-of-school children, by coming up with a programme specifically designed to attract and retain these children in school; creation of a comprehensive database for analysing dropout, retention, survival and completion rates and producing “school report cards;” and to benefit the poorest families, elimination of the requirements of school uniforms and payment of fees in all primary schools, ensuring free access to textbooks and school stationery, and covering every primary school under the School Feeding Programme. Improved “learning gains” could be made by reactivating the National Students’ Service (NSS) to run remedial education programmes in primary schools for children who are lagging in their studies. Volunteers in the reactivated NSS would be chosen from top recent college graduates (based on criteria such as their academic performance and aptitudes toward voluntary services) and would be paid generous allowances; following completion of two years of service, they would be given preferred recruitment in the civil service and/or awarded a fellowship for higher studies abroad.

Strategy 5:

Create high-performance schools based on the best systems of governance, finance, organisation and management.

Radically changing the reality of school bureaucracies can help to create high-performance schools in Bhutan. Drawing from global best practices, it will be important for the Ministry of Education (MoE) to provide leadership and support toward this end, through establishing school accountability without micromanaging. This can be achieved by empowering schools administratively and financially, as well as strengthening high-quality technical assistance from MoE. Relevant officials, including Dzongkhag Education Officers, would be given the mission to create a positive climate of respect and trust between schools and education headquarters, communicating clear goals and expectations and functioning as service organisations that see schools and students as “clients.” Involvement of parents and communities in school performance should be strengthened, in part focusing School Management Boards on policy rather than operational issues.

Strategy 6:

Support students who need it most.

Following a detailed screening assessment, a school intervention process could be developed that helps students to stay on track and at grade level. This could include tutoring, “double scheduling” in target areas, and other initiatives. Provisions could be created for access to after-school extended day programming as well as mentors, along with health and social services at or near schools to increase the chances of students being healthy and ready to learn. In some cases, establishment of residential schools may be necessary to best support these students.

Strategy 7:

Ensure quality assurance of higher education.

This can be achieved through integration of the primary, secondary and higher education systems in the country into a seamless whole, linking academic, professional and vocational programmes and making the education system globally responsive. Alignment of the system to long-term human resources and development perspectives, making graduates “fit for market,” will be critical. Clear guidelines and relationships should be established between MoE and the Royal University of Bhutan, or other appropriate bodies, with regard to regulation and coordination of higher education. Guidelines also are required on membership for tertiary education institutions in the Royal University of Bhutan, including future private higher education facilities. To ensure “the right education at the right time,” MoE, the Royal University of Bhutan and other tertiary education institutions should maintain strategic alliances with other human resources development partners such as the Ministry of Labour and Human Resources, the Royal Civil Service Commission and private sector bodies. Cooperation and collaboration with other quality assurance systems must be encouraged.

CHAPTER I: Bhutan’s Development of Education

Education has been the central player in the transformation of Bhutan from a traditional society to a dynamic, confident participant in regional and global affairs.

The provision and promotion of free education has been part of the success story of Bhutan’s effort to make education accessible to all its citizens. The primary enrolment rate stands at about 83 percent. With the establishment of the Royal University of Bhutan (RUB), the educational destiny of the country is taking a further new turn.

The main goals of Bhutan’s education sector have been to:

• Provide basic cost-effective and sustainable education to all Bhutanese, equipping citizens with basic literacy skills and functional knowledge and values within the Bhutanese cultural context

• Provide general secondary education on a selective basis, helping to build the necessary human capacity for further specialised education and training in science, technology, business and education, among others

• Provide higher education in selected fields, preparing key people to deliver and continuously upgrade services and industries in the country, as well as to enable Bhutan to engage in the continuous search for knowledge

• Establish an enabling environment imparting wholesome education to children and youth

• Provide opportunities, especially for those who have missed out on formal education, to attain basic and functional literacy through non-formal and adult literacy programmes

• Promote a system of continuous and lifelong learning

At the heart of the Bhutanese education system is the desire to integrate the best in our cherished cultural and national values with the best in modern knowledge and technological developments from abroad, harnessing them to serve the best interests of the country.

Bhutan’s current formal education structure consists of seven years of primary schooling (Classes Pre-Primary to VI), along with six years of secondary education, comprising two years of lower secondary (Classes VII-VIII), two years of middle secondary (Classes IX-X), and two years of higher secondary (Classes XI-XII). This is followed by three years of undergraduate programmes in the country’s tertiary institutes, with smaller numbers of students going abroad for professional and postgraduate studies. The recent establishment of the Royal University of Bhutan is expected to cater to Bhutan’s higher education needs and aspirations.

Enrolment Patterns and Changes in Basic Education

In the early 1950s, modern education was a totally new concept, far different from the traditional monastic education system, where education and religious studies were seen as synonymous. In the beginning, schools were few and far between, making it necessary for the Royal Government to send many students to boarding schools in India. Most parents were particularly hesitant to send their daughters away to school; over the years, such hesitancy has diminished, however. Thus, female enrolment is today nearly at par with male enrolment, at least at the primary level.

Until the 1970s, Class VI represented the basic education level. As the country advanced, the requirements changed; by 1996, basic education had been raised to Class VIII. In 1999 this level was further raised to Class X, meaning that all Bhutanese can receive free education until that level with Royal Government support. Further education is highly selective and needs-based.

Non-Formal and Continuing Education Programmes

In spite of strong progress in education since planned development began in the country barely four decades ago, many people in remote corners of our country have missed the opportunity of attending school. The Ministry of Education has therefore established a vigorous programme of Non-Formal and Continuing Education to provide basic education opportunities to disadvantaged sections of the population.

Today there exist about 400 non-formal education (NFE) centres, spread across all 20 dzongkhags and covering some 18,000 adult women and men – about 70 percent of the adult illiterate population. What is especially encouraging is that the percentage of women in NFE programmes is more than twice that of men.

Traditional Values and IT

Bhutan’s identity is imbued with a value system anchored in the spiritual legacy of the country. What the Education Department recognises as “wholesome education” is a goal of cultivating the personal, academic, intellectual, psychological, emotional, spiritual, social and occupational dimensions of all Bhutanese children so that they grow up well-balanced, properly integrated and sensitive human beings. In all, the expectation is that children will grow up to be an asset to themselves as well as to society at large.

The country also has come a long way in ensuring a national teaching force. Today there are more than 6,000 educators, a dramatic change from the early 1960s, when there were barely 40. Bhutan now has a commendable teacher-student ratio of 1:32.

In recent years, Bhutan has particularly recognised the importance of integrating the tools of Information Technology into the education system; the intent is to bring the knowledge and information available around the world into our classrooms. In an age of “information explosion,” and as Bhutan becomes an increasingly knowledge-based society; the benefits made available through modern technology hardly need emphasising.

Looking Ahead

Education will continue receiving a high priority in the development policy of the Royal Government as it pursues the goals of improving citizens’ quality of life as well as enhancing the human resources to meet the country’s needs. More specifically, the thrust of the education sector will be in:

• Expansion of basic education to cover the entire population

• Improvement of the quality and relevance of education to address the holistic development of the child, including innate abilities, social cohesion, national imperatives and the world of work, encompassing agriculture and other vocations

• Development of a highly motivated and competent teaching cadre that supports a holistic approach to education and learning

• Utilisation of educational innovations and new technologies to increase access to education and improve its quality

• Development of private schools to allow for greater choice in curricula and teaching-learning approaches, as well as lessen to the resource burden on the Royal Government and allow it to focus on improving Government schools, among others

As Bhutan looks increasingly beyond its national boundaries for access to global knowledge and skills, education will continue providing it with the leverage to propel itself forward.

The Advent of the University

The country’s desire for a place in the intellectual arena came to fulfilment on 2 June 2003, when the Royal University of Bhutan was established, coinciding with the celebration of the 29th anniversary of the coronation of His Majesty Druk Gyalpo Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the fourth hereditary Monarch of Bhutan.

Comprising existing colleges and institutes that are expected to grow into centres of excellence, the university will include major functions of knowledge development, personnel development and provision of services, among others. More specifically, it will:

• Institute programmes of studies and granting of degrees, including postgraduate and doctorate

• Create qualified human resources to serve the professional sector of the fastexpanding economy

• Monitor course quality and teaching effectiveness in member institutions

• Establish criteria for and accredit member institutions

• Coordinate exchange and sharing of resources among member institutions

• Oversee development and delivery of relevant curricula

• Guide the direction, dimension and quality of higher education in the country

It is hoped that the Royal University of Bhutan will embody the true tradition of higher education.

Concerns and Challenges

The Royal Government has not only is deeply committed to providing free basic education to all Bhutanese children, but it also has signed the international Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Education for All document. Likewise, it has created a wide network of schools and non-formal education centres across the country. Enrolment has grown so rapidly, however, that has become difficult to cope with the demand – and quality is often at stake. Concern has been expressed at all levels of society over a perceived decline in standards of education, with student performance particularly worrisome in mathematics, languages and the sciences.

In addition, it is widely believed that the quality of teachers leaves much to be desired; that leadership needs to be more inspiring; that curriculum should maintain a desirable level of integrity; that values need to be practised rather than talked about; and a host of other issues that affect education.

Especially in a country like Bhutan, with a small population, every citizen needs to be properly educated. Research and development are crucial to the education process. To this end, the newly instituted, independent Royal Education Council is expected to render counsel and support to the Ministry of Education.

Education Sector Review Commission

In view of the system-wide concerns over education quality, the Royal Government of Bhutan decided to institute a 10-member National Education Sector Review Commission to examine the state of education and recommend actions to address the problem. The Executive Order issued by the Honourable Prime Minister on 1 November 2006 requires the Commission to conduct a comprehensive study of the system as per the Terms of Reference and submit the report to the Government within one year.

Overall, the state of the nation’s education system is as revealing as it is worrying. However, since education is founded on the principles of hope and achievement, there exists legitimate reason to be confident that with the correct measures in place, the system can be as robust and efficient as we all wish it to be.