Under the internal conflict in Nepal, schools were used as weapons of war. School facilities were taken over by Maoists, and the role of the teachers became highly politicized. It was far from the place where you can hear the laughter of children.

When we visited Bara district, we were able to see one of the schools. It was a two-story building that the stairs were in dangerous condition that if a student step off the stairs, he would be hit onto the ground. All the classrooms were equipped with blackboards and table with chairs, which was better than my expectation. However, it was beyond satisfactory level. When we were walking around the school facilities, many people from the village including children gathered around us and stared at us. I was so curious to know what the children were seeing through us. Are they envisioning an ideal world though us? Or are they just seeing us as an object to make money from?

In the capital, Kathmandu, all the classes were taught in English, but on the other hand, all the subjects are taught in Nepali language in rural areas. This disconnection between the capital and the countryside create a huge gap in the quality of education. And this undoubtedly leads to the differences in numbers of jobs that they are qualified to attain. For example, if they can speak English, they can be hired in a tourism industry, which generates huge profit in the country.

In Kathmandu, I accosted by a boy who was selling jewelry. I was so surprised to hear his fluent Japanese, but seeing his eagerness to sell jewelries to me, I hesitated. Since I knew that Japanese is one of the main tourists who come to Nepal and spend lots of money there, I could not help myself feeling disappointed that his purpose of learning Japanese is just to get money. Of course I understand that he had to stand out among the great number of seller on the road, and I was sure that Japanese tourists would be attracted by his language ability and buy something from him.

However, this leads to my question of, “for what purpose do we learn”?