objective of basic education as the development of ‘the innate ability of each
child through child-centred education’ (CDC, 2007a, p. 41). It aims to produce
citizens who are loyal to the nation and to democracy, and aware of their
responsibility towards society and the natural environment. Students are also
expected to be competent in communicating ideas, and to be independent,
hardworking, health-conscious and morally sound.
According to the NCF, the objectives of secondary education (grades 9–12)
are to produce competent and healthy citizens who can contribute to
economic development and are familiar with national traditions, cultural and
social heritage, and democratic values. Its main aims are to produce a pool
of skilled human resources capable of furnishing solid contributions to the
all-round development of the country, and to impart the basic knowledge
required for a university education. These objectives were adopted by the
CDC for grades 9 and 10 (2007b).
Nepal also has a non-formal education system. Literacy, general education,
vocational and technical education, and skills training are provided by various
institutions at various levels.
The Government of Nepal is committed to the provision of good
quality education for all. It also recognizes that learning should be
useful to the learners for their immediate, as well as future lives. The
curriculum therefore incorporates various forms of knowledge, skills
and attitudes. The curriculum tends to focus on cognitive aspects,
however,^3 despite recognition of the need to incorporate non-cognitive^
skills. The government has attempted to include some non-cognitive skills in
the curriculum (CDC, 2005) and has developed teacher preparation courses
on some non-cognitive^4 aspects and has provided teachers with training, but
only sporadically.
3 Cognitive theory is concerned with knowing and thinking. It studies the structures and
components for processing information. The fields of study encompassed are memory,
attention, perception, language, reasoning, problem solving and creativity (Elliott et al.,
2000). The cognitive foundation of learning theory was initially based on the study of
human ‘memory’, and it takes ‘mental representation’ as a central proposition.
4 Non-cognitive attributes are skills and traits that are not specifically intellectual or
analytical in nature. These skills are not directly related to specific subject and content.
They include a range of personality and motivational habits and attitudes that facilitate
functioning well in school and life, such as life skills, critical thinking, peaceful living,
value-based living, perseverance, motivation, self-control, and other aspects of
conscientiousness (Rosen, Glennie, Dalton, Lennon, and Bozick, 2010).