De-Rooting Education

 At 19, Nimesh Ghimire is the founder of Minimally Invasive Education, an education project supported by Save the Children-USA, Global Changemakers and the Nepal Government. He recently graduated from Budhanilkantha School and has taken a year off to work on his project before pursuing further studies. In 2009, he got the opportunity to participate in the prestigious Guildford Forum in the UK as a Global Changemaker which has been a turning point in his life. Along with this, he attended the 4th International Students’ Science Fair in Japan as team leader of the Nepalese delegation. A proud recipient of Nepal Scout King’s badge, he continues to be a passionate member of Nepal Scout. Nimesh was also the Deputy Director to $10,000 grant Davis Projects for Peace Nepal 2009 and is leading the initiative of organizing the first ever Regional Model SAARC Summit in the year 2010. V.E.N.T! Magazine talked to Nimesh about Minimally Invasive Education and what it means to Nepal.

What is non-invasive education? Why do you think there is a need for such an educational program in Nepal?

The  age-old  curriculum  in  Nepal  promotes  a  system  where  being  educated  simply  means memorizing the course. It focuses on forcing as much as data and facts as possible into the students without caring much for the level of understanding and skill development. To make things worse, even the classroom teaching methodology is not at all up to the scratch.

Minimally Invasive Education (MIE) believes that Nepal’s limited investment in education has not been able to bear desired fruits. While we recognize the monotonous classroom environment as well as an outdated Nepalese curriculum as the key problems to educational inefficiency in Nepal, we also know that the curriculum is not going to change overnight. But it is equally imperative to quickly find out other loop-holes in the Nepalese education system and enact immediately to pull the country out of an education predicament.

How did you come up with this concept for Nepal?

This was how MIE was born some 1.5 years ago. While working to change the curriculum of primary level education throughout the country as our long term goal, we devised equally ambitious programs to tackle and change the underlying unattractive and monotonous classroom environment and hence, promote an interactive learning environment amongst primary level children in government schools.

You're investing a lot of faith in children's ability to work together and learn on their own. How far do you think this is going to be effective?

While MIE has its base in Sugata Mitra's MIE concept, our version of MIE is completely different from what Professor Mitra originally proposed. We have modeled our version of MIE into more of a classroom teaching method using available resources rather than by using computers.

Learning can be most effective when students get inspired to learn and take it as a passion. By providing an appropriate classroom environment through the introduction of a range of activities, which are very appealing from their point of view, we ensure that the students get inspired to be educated. By making them work together in groups, share what they have learnt and help each other, we have observed that the learning process is much more effective. I am sure that in the long run, this approach is going to yield more benefits than the class room environment that exists currently.

Does MIE have any future plans for expansion?

Yes, we do. We plan to expand the MIE Mentor and Tutor program to all high schools by the end of August next year. Under this system, we will encourage senior high schoolers to take up one government school and manage one of its classes for a year under the MIE system. We will also be working on producing statistics which will show that the MIE method of education is better suited in the Nepalese context.

You're applying to study abroad and you're talking about a sustainable MIE. Who's going to take over your place here?

I will not be away until August next year, by which MIE will have its own sustainable loop within government schools and colleges across the valley. MIE's programs will be managed by individual schools and the seniors of each school will pass on the charge to their juniors as they graduate. The overall management of MIE will be taken charge by Global Changemakers from Nepal.

If the system of education in Nepal is so important to you then why are you going abroad? Can't you study in Nepal to get a better idea of how to implement  MIE?

Changing Nepal's education system is no small feat. I want to be educated in one of the best universities so that when I come back to Nepal, only then I will be able to take MIE to that next level, from which it can challenge policy makers to change the system. I want to be equipped with tools that will help me better manage MIE, that means gain a lot of international exposure – in both the cultural and educational contexts – so that I am empowered to make a bigger difference to the education system in Nepal.

Many teachers or parents may be reluctant to implement such a plan in their schools. How would you or do you tackle this?

This has not really been a problem for our project thus far. The idea of senior students from nearby schools coming to teach the students with an entirely different method appeals most of the government schools we work with- as most of them also feel that the way we teach in classroom should be changed. However, at some instances, the teachers are not entirely sure of our commitment and want to monitor our impact and progress, which is fine with us.

You had the opportunity to get a good education, but most Nepalese are not that lucky. How about students who cannot go to the best schools? How are you targeting them?

The MIE Mentor and Tutor Program is intended to addresses this point. Under this program, we approach well-off colleges to take over one class of a nearby government school and manage it for a year. By going to these relatively poor government schools, we believe that the students who got better educational opportunities get to share their experiences and serve the students who were less fortunate than they were in terms of educational opportunities.

You represented Nepal at the Guildford Global Changemakers' conference in 2009. How did you feel being part of such an international gathering? How does being part of the Global Changemakers' community help you in your pursuit?

Getting selected to participate as one of the 60 Global Changemakers was a great honor for me. Not only did I get the opportunity to represent Nepal, but also got the platform to meet 59 other like-minded individuals who were just as passionate about changing their community for the better. We got networking opportunities, learnt from each others' experiences, and in the end, some of us even collaborated to lay a bigger hand on our pursuits. For MIE, the Global Changemakers network is going to be particularly helpful as we move on to realize our vision of expanding the MIE Mentor and Tutor program across countries in South Asia.

As a young social entrepreneur and a Global Changemaker, what do you think about the state of the youth in Nepal? Do you think the mushrooming of youth organizations has any real social impact?

I believe in the power of youth, but I see a greater necessity in efforts which would empower the youth of Nepal to take charge of building their country. Young people in Nepal often do come up with great ideas, but are not able to put those ideas to practice. They are afraid of getting out of the usual norm to challenge the status quo, and I really find this to be unfortunate.

You say that many are afraid of getting out of the usual norm to challenge the status quo. In a country like Nepal, where the culture does not encourage such behavior, how do you plan to implement your plan?

I agree with you when you say that the Nepali culture does not encourage coming out of the social norm to challenge the status quo. The culture that allows the youth to stand for what they deem right should be created. My referral to ‘the usual norm’ was intended at Nepali students having greater sense of entitlement than the sense of responsibility. By going to individual colleges and delivering presentation on the importance of using ones’ knowledge to help others in need, I hope to take the project forward by inspiring the students to come out of the box and contribute their time to the project.

How is your organization different from other existing organizations in that sense?

Efficiency is what counts rather than volume, and in Nepal, there are a lot of organizations working for the same cause, but separately. MIE is different because we are the only group working to redefine youth empowerment in high schools, and our ideas and methods have been recognized by the Nepal government as a new endeavor in the field of education in the country.

What is your message to the youth of Nepal?

I urge the Nepali youth to be concerned about their community, and try and apply their knowledge and skills in making a positive difference to Nepali communities.

For more information, go to minimallyinvasiveeducation.org.

Interview by Ayushma Regmi, V.E.N.T! Magazine.