KMC to provide inclusive exam facilities for students with special needs

KATHMANDU: Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) has announced special arrangements to make examinations more accessible for students with autism, intellectual disabilities, Down syndrome, and other special needs.

According to Sunita Dangol, acting chief of KMC, students appearing for the basic level examinations who have special conditions are being allowed to take exams at their home centers to ensure comfort and accessibility.

Recognizing that students with special needs require a tailored educational environment, KMC is planning to develop institutions specifically designed for such learners.

Under Rule 47 of the Education Regulations, 2022, provisions have been made for visually impaired, deaf, hearing-impaired, and psychosocially disabled students to take exams in a format they can understand, including the use of sign language. If such students cannot complete the exam within the scheduled time, the center chief or school may grant an additional one hour and thirty minutes.

For students with developmental disabilities or other special conditions who are unable to complete the exam using the standard question papers, schools are required to assess them based on individualized learning methods and submit the results to the respective resource center.

The basic level examinations, which began on March 19, are being conducted across 57 centers, 47 in community schools and 10 in institutional schools.

A total of 19,117 students from 494 schools are participating, including 10,745 boys and 8,372 girls.

By school type, 4,614 students are from 77 community schools (including two prison-based and one special school), 837 from 20 alternative schools, 70 from six religious schools, and 13,596 from 391 institutional schools.

Special attention has been given to 9 visually impaired students studying at Central Deaf Secondary School, Naxal, with the exam conducted at their own school to meet their specific needs.

Exams for students in Jagannath Deval Secondary School and Bandi Bikas Basic School (prison schools) are also being conducted within the respective facilities due to security concerns and difficulty in moving students outside.

KMC states these measures aim to ensure inclusive education and equal assessment opportunities for all students, regardless of their abilities.