Update.. so far!

Looking back at my academic results in High School, I could see that I was good in Language and Economics. However, it was a trend back in the days for all students with good grades to opt for science after completing High School. Therefore I, too, was advised and pointed towards Sherubtse College to study science in 2002. I really did not enjoy studying science that much and I soon found that out when I got my results for my 12th grade. I still did well in language, both in English and Dzongkha, so I had decided to study B.A. Psychology, an option available for me during the Royal Government of Bhutan scholarship selection interview. When the scholarship panelist asked me why I opted for this, I told them that I was good in language, and that I liked to socialize with people. But one of the panelists told me, “But you are qualifying for Engineering.” I ended up choosing civil engineering that day. What I want to imply from this short narration from my personal life is that we came from a time and education set up, where we were not taught to become the best versions of ourselves but to best fit a role that our society thought had a secure future for us in terms of work and financial returns. Coming to the present day, I have friends who are working in good professions, but this has not guaranteed them satisfaction that would have come if one had followed their own strength and potential. They are good at what they do but they would have been great if we had something like the Bhutan Baccalaureate back then. I have been a part of the Royal Academy ever since I was assigned here on Deputation from the Ministry of Works and Human Settlement in April 2014. Initially, I was reluctant to get out of my comfort zone, but I decided to give it a go after understanding the noble vision behind this project. Although inexperienced, I had the right intention and motivation to carry forward this new assignment. We were a group of young engineers and architects sent here in the jungle of Pangbisa in 2014 from various agencies of the Government. When we first went through the scope of the project, being young and inexperienced, we were overwhelmed but at the same time, we took this project up as a challenge and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We started our journey here in Pangbisa by living in tents for about 6 months. We did not have a proper road, electricity, drinking water or WIFI back then. Our office was a green house and a truck wheel drum hanging by an oak tree would wake us up every morning at 7 am. Although we did not have the comforts or any modern facilities at the project site, and the only road that took us to the nearest town was a two-hour journey on a tractor, we were a really highly motivated team with the will to succeed at any cost. This December, I will be completing my 8th year in Pangbisa and looking back at my journey, I can proudly say that it has been quite a learning experience, personally as well as professionally. When I first joined The Royal Academy Project in April 2014, now called the Druk Gyalpo’s Institute (DGI), and being from an engineering background, I thought my role was limited to the construction of the DGI campus only. But being part of the DGI family for a long time now, and being one of the lucky few, of having several opportunities to hear His Majesty share his concerns about the future of our country, especially the future of our youth, in terms of the quality of education they received and the direction they were headed, my perspective on my role, I thought I had, has changed. And as a parent myself, I now think that I have a greater role to play in order for this noble vision to materialize. Personally, it has been a journey of continuous learning ever since I joined this project. I have seen myself grow throughout the years. I hope and I do feel that I am a better version of myself with each passing day. And this to me, is my understanding of the Bhutan Baccalaureate. We should all strive to be better than who we were yesterday and become lifelong learners. Through the Bhutan Baccalaureate, our children should not only develop in the cerebral area, which is the most common aspect of development in our current education system, but also the other four very important areas of development, which are the Physical, Spiritual, Emotional and Social areas of development. When I look back to my 17 years of schooling, I do not remember anything more than having to memorize texts and concepts that we had to regurgitate during our examinations, after which it became obsolete for us in the real world. Most of the skills and watermarks that I have within me today, I feel, are through my friends, my community, experiences, and my family. Developing our children through a process of designing a process of inculcating Skills, Processes, and Watermarks through Roadmaps are some of the important features of the Bhutan Baccalaureate that would help a child become the best versions of themselves. The overall objective, as His Majesty has always stressed upon, is to raise children who become good human beings first and then a contributing member of a just and harmonious society. I first came to learn about the 5 areas of development of the Bhutan Baccalaureate on 13th April 2016, through a presentation by the Royal Academy Team to His Majesty at the Conference Hall, Royal University of Bhutan, Thimphu. After the presentation, His Majesty spoke about these four important points, which still resonate in my mind to this day. For me, these are some of the reasons why the Bhutan Baccalaureate had to be initiated. 1. Survival of a Nation: Bhutan is a small country and with changing times, we need to contemplate about how to make our country better. It is important to bring about new ideas and think about how to navigate through these changing times. It is a big responsibility and a big concern. Through education, we should be able to give good experiences and intelligence to our children, through which they are provided with a better foundation and become self-reliant in the future. We need to be able to put the right skills in the right place. It is a question about collective good versus individual success. 2. Equity: It is observed that there are different fates for different individuals studying in the very same classroom. Bhutan is a small country so we must focus on equity. Our children should have equal access to an equal playing field and education should be the social equalizer. With the increasing cost of education in our country and throughout the world, it is concerning for education in our public schools. The percentage of population with access to high quality education would be very less so we have to work on how to make all the 550 schools in the country better. 3. Learned Society: Bhutan has a good gene pool, which was diverse with experiences and ideas as thousands of sages and warrior kings traveled through the country in the past. Bhutanese are descendants of sages, yogis, traders, warriors, etc. The present modern education was established during the period of industrial revolution, and it has failed to prepare our children for the rapidly changing world. It has also become very important to connect with our past while finding our way into the future. We need to reinstall and re-establish what we already had. 4. Bhutanese Identity: Rich, poor, or of different caste or religions, it has become important to have an evermore strong identity which transcends all differences, based on a strong foundation. Above are some of the reasons why I truly believe in the Bhutan Baccalaureate and its objectives. Small countries like Bhutan are meant to be more agile and disciplined, with a natural ability to translate ideas into results. Through the Bhutan Baccalaureate, our children should be more ambitious and not set mediocre targets as we have been always accepting low benchmarks in our lives. Our children must hold themselves to world class standards. From what I understand, our children should be well prepared for the future through the Bhutan baccalaureate. On numerous occasions, His Majesty has shared that the world is going to change exponentially in the next 30 to 40 years. The question and worry on our minds should be, are we preparing our kids for this exponential change. Will our children be a part of the change and take part in this change or be left behind. Our kids must benefit the country, have control over their own future. I quote his Majesty when I write that, “Their future must not be by default but by their own design.” This, I think, is what should guide us and inspire us with what we are doing every day.