Neo-liberal educational reform and the role of teachers’ unions in the context of private schools in Nepal: Possibility or paralysis?

Nepal experienced political change from absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy in 1990 and finally to a republic in 2008. These changes in the political climate were followed by subsequent change in the educational policy as the incoming regimes tried to incorporate its ideology in the educational policy. This paper analyses the role of teachers’ unions in the educational reform in Nepal since the 1990s with special focus on private schooling context. This paper draws information collected through qualitative interviews with teachers, administrators and principals of two private schools in Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal. It also uses documentary sources including newspaper articles and other documents related to private schooling in general and teachers’ unions in particular. This study found that teachers’ unions in the context of private schools in Nepal are still struggling for survival due to lack of support from the stakeholders of private schools.