FACULTY OF EDUCATION
Faculty of Education, Office of the Dean, BalkhuBalkhu, Nepal
Highlights
Balkhu, Nepal
Faculty of Education (FOE) was established as College of Education in 1956, which was before the establishment of its mother institution, Tribhuvan University (TU) in 1959. FOE was established to institutionalize teacher education programmes in Nepal. It is the largest faculty of TU in terms of the number of students and campuses affiliated with TU. With 26 constituent campuses and 544 affiliated colleges running the teacher education programme throughout the country, FOE has the biggest network of teacher education in the country. Since its establishment, FoE has been contributing to the nation by producing and supplying human resources needed for schools and educational sectors in the country. It has offered diverse educational programmes in a wider range of subject areas including social studies, science and information and communication technology (ICT) education.
FOE currently offers educational programmes in Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.), Master of Education (M.Ed.), Master of Social Studies Education (MSSEd), Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in education. The Bachelor’s and master’s programmes are blended with academic contents and professional courses. However, these programmes have placed greater emphasis on theory-oriented academic courses than on professional skills. In the emerging context, FOE is committed to reinvigorating the quality of the teacher education programmes by blending the strong theoretical foundations with sound pedagogical and professional competence that includes engaging and interactive pedagogy, instructional planning, material development, classroom management and evaluation. Practice Teaching/Practicum, as a typical feature of a teacher education programme, needs to be made rigorous to ensure pedagogical competence among the graduates.
FOE envisions the promotion of quality education across the country by preparing highly qualified teachers and educators.
The mission of FOE is to provide leadership to teacher education and professional development in the country by developing itself as a center of excellence for teacher education and training, educational studies and research and innovation.
The goal of FOE is to produce trained teachers, teacher educators, and educational researchers needed in the country. It also aims at producing educational planners and managers, curriculum designers and human resources needed for the educational sector of the country through its various programmes. FOE aims at achieving the following objectives:
● To prepare trained teachers for the schools of the country in collaboration with the Ministry of Education;
● To produce teacher educators, education specialists, education managers and administrators;
● To produce high level human resources in the field of education through the M. Phil. and Ph. D. programmes;
● To conduct research studies that contribute to the betterment of the education system in general and the teacher education sub-system in particular;
● To contribute to the growth and development of the education sector of the country;
● To provide expert professional and technical consultancy services to agencies/organizations/ individuals working in different educational sectors;
● To support the MOE, Nepal in the formation of education policy, programmes planning and their implementation and evaluation;
● To work as a national forum for bringing about debates and discussions in orders to address the critical educational issues; and
● To share and disseminate educational research and innovations by linking itself with related national and international organizations.
FoE offers the following academic as well as professional programmes:
● Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
● Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.)
● Master of Education (M.Ed.) (four semesters)
● Master of Social Studies Education (MSSEd) (six semesters)
● Bachelor of Education (B. Ed.) (annual)
● Bachelor of Information and Communication Technology Education (BICTE) (eight semesters)
● Master of Education in Science Education (open and distance learning/ODL) (three semesters)
● Post-Graduate Diploma in Education (three semesters)
M.Phil./PhD Programmes
The Ph.D. programme in education was initiated in 1996 with a view to preparing high level academics and researchers in the field of education. So far, seventy-four Ph.D. scholars have successfully completed the Ph. D. degree. Currently, 281 students/scholars undergoing Ph.D. research in subjects including English, Nepali, Health, Mathematics, Science Education, Curriculum, Educational Planning, Inclusive Education, Social and Educational Studies.
Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.) in Education with specialization in Education Studies, Mathematics Education, English Education, Nepali Education, Social Studies, and Health Education is also offered to students who are interested in educational research. The M.Phil. leading to PhD program was started in 2017 to integrate courses of M.Phil. with the PhD programme. This integrated programme is designed with a view to providing M.Phil. students an opportunity to go for the PhD programme after the successful completion of the M.Phil. courses.
New Programmes
The FOE also plans, develops, and implements new courses and programmes by mobilizing its own resources as well as collaborating with national and international agencies. M.Ed. in ICT has been running at the Central Department of Education, Kirtipur, and Sanothimi Campus since 2014/015. Likewise, M. Ed. in Special Needs Education (SNE) has been introduced at the Central Department of Education in collaboration with Changwon National University, South Korea in 2016. The SNE courses were revised and renamed as Inclusive Education in 2023. Master in Inclusive Education is being run with a scholarship program at the Central Department of Education in collaboration with Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway and financial support from NORHED II Project
FoE has been implementing another new programme, the six-semester Master of Social Studies Education (MSSEd) Programme in blended mode (face-to-face and online) at the Central Department of Education with its own resources since 2021. MSSEd is an interdisciplinary course that integrates contents from history, geography, political science, economic and cross-cutting areas of social sciences with classroom pedagogy. The new MSSEd programme is designed to prepare pre-service teachers (students) with sound knowledge and skills required for teaching social studies from grade 8-12 at school. Candidates having an educational qualification in Bachelor of Education in any discipline from Tribhuvan University, and its recognized educational institutions can apply for admission to this program.
FoE has currently introduced a three-semester Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) programme in the blended mode at the Central Department of Education as well as seven constituent campuses in 2024. This program has replaced the earlier 12-month one-year B.Ed. programme. The PGDE program aims to provide pedagogical training to prospective teachers and those currently teaching at the basic and secondary levels. Individuals willing to obtain this degree must have had a bachelor’s degree or equivalent. The programme serves as fundamental teacher training, sensitizing and orienting teachers/prospective teachers to the core aspects of their profession. It is a renewed and revised teacher education program for various subject tracks that is required to complete in three semesters (18 months). Upon completion of theorical and practical courses of PGDE from campus, student teachers will participate in internship in the selected schools for at least six months. In this way, the PGDE programme is designed to meet the professional development needs of teachers in upper basic and secondary schools by employing critical and participatory pedagogy, engaging students in hands-on practical activities, and utilizing digital technologies.
The Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.) leading to PhD programme in Inclusive Education has been implemented at the Graduate School of Education in collaboration with Oslo Metropolitan University and Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences through the NORHED II Project. Five female students studying M.Phil. in Inclusive Education receive scholarship from the Project. Three of the best-performing female students will be awarded with the PhD scholarship in May 2024 to carry out doctoral research/study in the areas of inclusive education. Two male faculty members of FoE have been pursuing doctoral studies in Inclusive Education at the Graduate School of Education of Tribhuvan University, and one has been doing his PhD research in Inclusive Education at Inland Norway University of Applied Science, Norway since 2022
An agreement between the Faculty of Education and Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway to implement the project Building Inclusive Education Programme in Nepal (BIEPN) with a grant of NORHED II, was signed in August 2021. This project is being implemented in cooperation with Oslo Metropolitan University, Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway, and Mid-West University of Nepal. The overarching goal of the project is the establishment of a robust teaching and research group on special needs/inclusive education at the Faculty of Education, Tribhuvan University. It is also expected that the capacity of the faculty in inclusive education will be enhanced and the number of faculty and students holding a PhD in this field will be increased by the establishing an MPhil /PhD programme in inclusive education/special needs education, and through the faculty and student exchange (one semester) stays at Inland Norway University and Oslo Met University for five PhD scholarship students and a minimum of two teaching and supervision staff at the Faculty of Education, Tribhuvan University, and/or participation by students and staff at the Summer School in Oslo, organized by University of Oslo. The collaborative project will contribute to the creation of an SNE department-based e-Library to make teaching and learning resources accessible to students and teachers, and the setting up of two resource centres at two departments of the subject, one at the Special Needs Education Department, Kirtipur and the other at Sanothimi Campus, for hands-on experience to the faculty and the students.
FoE of Tribhuvan University has developed and implemented the new master Programme, Master of Educational Sciences in Digital Pedagogy since 2023 at ODEC of Tribhuvan University, Nepal in collaboration with JAMK University of Applied Sciences and HAMK University of Applied Sciences with a financial assistance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Finland Government. The new course is intended to prepare and train the novice as well as the old faculty of the universities of Nepal, including Tribhuvan University, for the integration of ICT and digital pedagogy in higher education of Nepal. The goal of the programme is to equip the teaching faculty of the universities with the 21st century pedagogy focusing on digital pedagogy.
There is a formal agreement (MoU) between FOE of Tribhuvan University and International Center for Higher Education and Innovation (UNESCO-ICHEI), China for enhancing the capacity of the faculty in the integration of ICT in higher education teaching and learning through short-term training and ICT infrastructure development. In the first phase of the project, UNESCO-ICHEI will provide equipment, technology, and technical supports to FOE for establishing a smart classroom at the Central Department of Education. They will also provide short-term trainings to the faculty on how to run the smart classroom effectively while teaching and learning by integrating ICT. It also provides the faculty with opportunities to participate in the ICT-related online courses/teacher professional development courses.
FoE has implemented the Equitable Access to Higher Education for students with disabilities and those from marginalized groups in Nepal (EATHEN) Project in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST), Nepal Open University (NOU), JAMK University of Applied Sciences, Finland, Masaryk University, Czech Republic, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna UNIBO, Italy. The project operates with financial supports from ERASMUS+ Capacity Building in the Field of Higher Education Project, which remained in effect between 2019 and December 2022. The main goal of the EATHEN-Project was to enhance inclusive management practices and access to higher education for people with disabilities (PwD) and from marginalized groups and regions (MG) in Nepal. This also enhances the implementation of the inclusive policies and strategies of MoEST in Nepal. The project activities have been implemented by FoE, Office of the Dean, Prithvi Narayayan Campus, Pokhara and Dhankuta Multiple Campus, Dhankuta. Trainings were provided for the faculty and the staff with an aim of enhancing their abilities to work with disabled students and the students from marginalized groups.
Admission Requirements
The candidates who wish to get admission to FOE must sit for the entrance examination for master’s and M.Phil. programmes. Those who have completed their grade 12/ higher secondary education, or equivalent, are eligible for the four-year B.Ed. programme. However, the Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) programme in social studies subjects is open to those having a Bachelor’s degree in social sciences and other relevant subjects.
The M.Ed. programme is open to those who have completed their B.Ed. in their area of specialization. The M.Phil. programmes is open to all education-background students. Graduates from non- education backgrounds wishing to enroll in this programme have to take an additional of 4 credit-hours. Those people with an M.Phil. degree in Education are eligible for the admission to the Ph.D. programme.
The evaluation policy differs across the programmes. For B.Ed., the students must sit for the final exams conducted by the Controller of Examinations. Considering the nature of the subjects, they also take practical exams. In the M.Ed. programme, the students are evaluated through the internal exam (40%) and the external exam (60%). Whilst Subject teachers are responsible for internal evaluation the Office of the Dean conducts the external exam. The M.Phil. candidates are evaluated by their subject teachers in the internal exam (60%) and by the Office of the Dean on completion of each semester (i.e., end-of- semester exam). All M.Phil. and PhD candidates should carry out independent research and defend their dissertation for the degree.
Research Activities and Publications
FoE conducts both small- and large-scale research in areas of education in collaboration with both national and international agencies. It encourages its faculty by providing research grants to carry out small scale research studies on various issues of education. FoE has been implementing a collaborative research project titled "Inclusive education in Nepal: A study of network governance in selected municipalities". It is a national level study in the field of inclusive education and is funded by the Norwegian Research Council and implemented collaboratively by the partners in Nepal (Faculty of Education Office of the Dean, TU; Central Department of Sociology, TU; and, Social and Academic Innovations, SAIPL), Norway (Oslo Metropolitan University and University of Southeastern Norway) and UK (University College London Institute of Education). The research includes survey and qualitative field work components related to the status of inclusion in education (including inclusive education) in the selected municipalities and schools.
FoE has been awarded with the research grant by Research Directorate of Tribhuvan University for conducting research in the National Priority Area in March 2022. With the research grant, FoE is conducting research entitled “Teacher Education Policies and Programs in Nepal: Assessing Existing Practices and Exploring Opportunities” with an objective of assessing the existing situation of teacher education programmes of TU and other Universities of Nepal and explore the opportunities for re-orienting and enhancing the teacher education programme to address the country's needs and expectations of quality teachers for quality school education. This study is now towards its completion.
Publications
The FoE publishes the Education Quarterly, a peer reviewed journal, on the annual basis. The aim of the journal is to explore and investigate the content, teaching, pedagogy and professional innovation, primarily, of its faculty. It also publishes curricula, training manual, research reports and education programme brochures.
Future Direction
Existing mass-friendly teacher education programmes need to be shifted to be selective and systematic, considering professional standards and, supply and demand in the country so that most competent students can be attracted towards the teacher education programme. The need of the hour is transformative teacher education programmes capable of promoting quality education at all education levels. FoE needs to make programmatic changes and include new courses to better prepare and equip its graduates with pedagogical competencies and 21st-century skills. Moreover, there needs to be an intensive teaching-internship programme at the end of the programme to create opportunities for students to apply and reflect the knowledge and skills learned from campus to the school classroom and gain practical experiences. FOE is moving in that direction, focusing on professional teacher education programmes in collaboration with government and non-government organizations.