It's virtually impossible to address a social ill without the society first acknowledging it for what it is. When the education system does NOT do that, what chance is there at all of there even being a discourse about it, forget take steps to address it?! That is the situation with the caste system in Nepal.
Nepali society is highly dysfunctional, hollow, and deeply flawed. There are many reasons behind that.
One is that Nepalis struggle greatly to empathize with fellow Nepalis even while they take pride in being born in the same country as the historical Buddha.
Another is that accountability for one's words and actions are virtually nonexistent. The reason? The level of education of the population is low, and even that education is of poor quality, the products of which are people unable to think and reason logically.
I have come to the conclusion that Nepalis in general struggle to empathize with fellow Nepalis who are, for example, suffering for whatever reason. The reason behind that is their low power of imagination.
Why are their power of imagination low? Caste system induced attitude, lack of travel experience, poor quality of both formal and informal education, and lack of reading culture.
From 1990 onwards, we've has a competition in Nepal...a competition among educators to give their academic institution the MOST ridiculous and/or absurd name. I know because, noticing it, I did a write-up on it and even stalked about it in my FM radio program in 1998. So, after three decades, who is winning? All of them...and naturally education is losing out.
Something on education I appear to have written in 1997-98 when I was in Nepal for a longish stay. It's basically some observations about education in Nepal--mainly how appears to be on a path it shouldn't be.
Nepali education system is so screwed up, schooling does NOT prepare you adequately for externally assessed terminal examinations. Furthermore, each stage of schooling does NOT prepare you for the stage that follow either. Instead, it requires that you get outside help to prepare yourself and continue your academic career!
What's the point of such an education system?!
A primary school poetry textbook contains 108 poems by 66 poets representing only 44 surnames. All but three were male poets. A vast majority (88%) of the poets were Bahun/Brahmin, hill so-called high Hindu, men who make up 6% of the population. And that's not even the worst.
Regardless, that makes one wonder, among other things, what the accomplishment of seventy or so years of education for the public has been. Who has the State been educating?
Nepal is NOT a knowledge-based economy. As a matter of fact, the aim of those in positions of power and influence--for whom power and money trumps everything--has always been to keep the population poorly education in order to control and manipulate them. So, view towers are prioritized over schools and libraries.
Nepali teachers, I have observed, do not use humor much or often. I am not sure why.
This blog contains embeds of two short clips from a presentation to students at a school in Kathmandu in which I use humor.
If, as an adult, you are CONVINCED that your academic institution SUCCEEDED in providing an excellent education, BUT has made you an ardent and blind supporter of the institution -- approving of everything it says, does, represents, and stands for unquestioningly -- then it failed you. Here are some examples of that from Nepal.