19th National Students' Quality Circle Starts in Pokhara

Pokhara. The 19th National Convention of Students' Quality Circle (SQC) started in Pokhara on Wednesday with the aim of promoting leadership development, moral values, and social responsibility among students. The convention began in Pokhara under the joint organization of QUEST Nepal and St. Mary's Secondary School, Pokhara.

The Minister for Women, Children, and Senior Citizens of the Government of Nepal, Shraddha Shrestha, inaugurated the convention. While inaugurating the event, Minister Shrestha mentioned that SQC is a life-oriented education that goes beyond textbooks. She stated that although today's children are talented and tech-savvy, they require proper guidance amidst rapid social change, mental pressure, and uncertainty. She added that SQC has played a significant role in building thought, character, and leadership.

Reminding that using children in political activities is against the law, she expressed the ministry's commitment to a safe learning environment and child-friendly policies. The Chief Patron of QUEST Nepal, Professor Dinesh Prasad Chapagain, expressed satisfaction over the expansion of SQC across Nepal over the past two decades.

Stating that SQC is a process designed for the personality development of students, he mentioned that the goal is to make students proficient. He urged students to internalize the core motto of SQC: "Let's compete with ourselves, let's collaborate with others."

Surina Sunayani Gurung, Chief Advisor of QUEST Nepal, stated that by gathering students from across Nepal in one place, QUEST Nepal has been doing significant work in identifying student quality. Sister Jessy C.J., co-coordinator of the convention and Principal of St. Mary's, emphasized that students should identify problems, reach the root cause, and involve themselves in solving them.

Narad Rijal, President of QUEST Nepal, said that students performed better than expected and that the program, which will run for two more days, will greatly benefit them. The three-day convention is being conducted with various educational and creative activities.

The first day of the convention began with reporting from delegates. This was followed by parallel sessions, SQC case study presentations, competitive programs, workshops, and sightseeing tours.

Earlier, in a panel discussion titled "SQC: Building Resilient Minds for a Sustainable Future," student representatives presented their experiences regarding the changes SQC brought to their thinking, behavior, confidence, and leadership skills. The discussion concluded that a major problem in today's society is the "empty gap" (the lack of ability to understand one another).

Students from various hubs, including Chitwan, Godawari, Jhapa, Rupandehi, Pokhara, and Sudurpashchim, shared that they learned the stages of problem identification, analysis, and solution through SQC. Sharing experiences of working on real problems in schools and communities using tools such as the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle, pie diagrams, line graphs, pair ranking, Pareto charts, Ishikawa diagrams, and "why-why" analysis, participants expressed that SQC is a practicing ground for safe expression, collaboration, and decision-making skills.

The common conclusion of the participants was that SQC is not just a program but an effective process for developing empathy, collaboration, leadership, and responsibility necessary for life. Facilitator of the panel discussion, Jasmine Karanjit Shrestha, stated that the role of SQC is extremely important in building capable and resilient minds for a sustainable future.

During the convention, the SQC theme song, welcome dance, case study presentations, and distribution of appreciation letters and honors were also completed. According to the organizers, it is believed that the convention will add new energy to the collaboration between students, teachers, and parents, further strengthening the SQC movement.

The program was attended by the father of Students' Quality Circle and Chief Patron Prof. Dinesh Prasad Chapagain, Balram Poudel of Pokhara Metropolitan City Ward No. 15, Head of the Education Department Krishna Bhandari, and distinguished personalities associated with education, social service, and the SQC movement.