The Bhutanese Leading the way.
Minister of Education and Skills Development (MoESD), Yeezang De Thapa, clarified during the 17th Meet-the-Press session that Bhutan is not adopting the Cambridge curriculum, but is instead aligning the National School Curriculum with Cambridge standards.
The alignment aims to ensure that Bhutanese students acquire internationally benchmarked competencies while firmly preserving the country’s unique values, priorities, and cultural identity.
Lyonpo Yeezang D. Thapa said that the curriculum alignment process, which began in January 2025, is being carried out in close collaboration with Cambridge experts.
Lyonpo said, “The initiative is guided by a Joint Steering Committee and focuses on four key areas; curriculum alignment, professional development, assessment alignment, and monitoring and evaluation”.
Curriculum frameworks for key subjects have already been co-developed with technical support from Cambridge, and consultations with teachers and stakeholders have been conducted. The aligned curriculum will be rolled out simultaneously across all schools nationwide to maintain consistency and educational equity.
To support this nationwide transition, teacher orientation and capacity-building programs are scheduled for September to October 2025.
Additionally, MoESD has planned annual professional development programs in collaboration with Cambridge to continuously support teachers in implementing the revised curriculum.
In line with the curriculum changes, textbooks and teaching-learning materials will also be reviewed and co-developed to match the new frameworks. This process is expected to begin in August 2025 and continue through the end of the year to ensure readiness for classroom use.
