The Bhutanese Leading the way.
Responding to a question asked during the 3rd Meet-the-Press session, held yesterday, on whether Bhutan will implement the Bhutan Baccalaureate (BB) curriculum in schools amidst the departure of trained teachers, the Minister for Education and Skills Development, Yeezang D Thapa, said that despite an attrition rate of five teachers (trained in the BB Curriculum) per year over the past two years, the system has not been hindered in its efforts to implement the BB curriculum.
“Even now we have teachers leaving, we still have two to three teachers who have completed a 6-month diploma in BB. These principals and teachers continue to uphold the implementation of the BB curriculum in schools. Moreover, senior teachers are also guiding the new teachers to implement BB in school,” Lyonpo Yeezang said.
According to MoESD despite the challenges posed by the BB curriculum, both teachers and students have shown remarkable dedication, resulting in a positive impact on education. Additionally, schools that have embraced the BB curriculum report fewer issues in enhancing students’ spiritual, emotional, and social well-being.
Furthermore, students enrolled in schools that have adopted the BB curriculum demonstrate strong competency skills, particularly in STEM subjects. Lyonpo cited the example of five students from these schools who earned the opportunity to participate in a robotics competition held in Singapore.
“If you look at the current education system, it is more, like academic centric, while BB learning gives an equal importance to physical, spiritual, emotional, social, and cerebral development.”
The Prime Minister (PM) also highlighted that the current curriculum in Bhutan is established by MoESD. He noted that researchers from Cambridge assessed up to grade 8 under the current curriculum as falling within a good category. However, they suggested that other grades could benefit from some enhancements, though they are still being effectively implemented.
Nevertheless, PM emphasized that there exists a significant disparity between the BB curriculum and the curriculum set by MoESD. He underscored the necessity of deciding whether the country should adhere to the BB curriculum or continue with the curriculum established by MoESD.
PM also expressed that there is no cause for concern in simultaneously following both curriculums. He further stated that if the BB curriculum continues to prove exceptionally beneficial for the future, then the schools should prioritize the implementation of the BB curriculum.
PM stated that despite the departure of trained teachers, there is still hope for the remaining educators to receive training for the BB curriculum.
“The 13th Five-Year Plan will commence once the decision regarding these two curriculums is finalized,” PM said, and further added, “Educationists and principals will be called upon for further decision-making processes regarding this professional development.”
