Education Journal 2022; 11(1): 26-35 http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/j/edu doi: 10.11648/j.edu.20221101.13 ISSN: 2327-2600 (Print); ISSN: 2327-2619 (Online) Community School Management Related Educational Policy Provisions in Nepal: Perception from Implementers Atma Ram Bhattarai Faculty of Social Sciences and Education, Nepal Open University, Lalitpur, Nepal Email address: To cite this article: Atma Ram Bhattarai. Community School Management Related Educational Policy Provisions in Nepal: Perception from Implementers. Education Journal. Vol. 11, No. 1, 2022, pp. 26-35. doi: 10.11648/j.edu.20221101.13 Received: December 12, 2021; Accepted: January 4, 2022; Published: January 15, 2022 Abstract: The purpose of the study was to explore the self-reflection and perception of the members of School Management Committee (SMC) of public schools on the policy provisions related to community school management in Nepal. The study explored the reflections of the education stakeholders who are at the level of community school management policy enactment. Therefore, the study reflects the perception of SMC Chairs, SMC members and Secretary of SMC. The study followed the phenomenological research design with an interpretive research paradigm. The high performing schools were sampled following the purposive sampling method based on the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) results of last three years. The study found that the SMCs of community schools are satisfied with the policy provision in terms of decentralization, planning, resource mobilization, community mobilization and improving transparency. They realized that there are enough provisions to strengthen and functionalize the community schools. However, the study identified that there are some reservations in the implementation. It was found that there was lack of consultation with the relevant stakeholders while developing the policy provision. On the other hand, it was identified that the government authorities do not consult with the SMCs while implementing the policies at the school level substituting the roles of SMCs of those clauses enlisted as the roles of SMC. Similarly, the study revealed, although the community schools are provided the significant responsibilities, but the schools are not able to implement all the provisions due to the inadequate budget allocated for school education. Keywords: Policy, School Management, Leadership, Decentralization, Transparency 1. Introduction There are different aspects of policies and practices associated with the functioning of schools and other educational institutions. Among them, educational management and leadership are the aspects demanding equal priorities and prominence [1, 2]. The school leadership and management are the democratic practices for the school improvement, and which should be judged by their effect on the quality and standards of the school at all levels [3]. 1.1. Locating the Concept The key debate for more than 20 years has been whether educational leadership is a distinct field or simply a branch of the wider study of management. When the education can be received from other settings, educational leadership, and management have to be centrally concerned with the purpose or aims of education. Therefore, the field of educational leadership and management is pluralist, with many competing perspectives [4]. Similarly, according to Grace, the term leadership was first used in the nineteenth century in moral terms and later it spread to other different sectors including education [5]. Leadership outlines the changing discourse of school management as it moves from preoccupations with social control to contemporary forms of market and finance management in education. In this way, educational leadership and management are distinguished by their meaning. Leadership means influencing others’ actions in achieving desirable ends whereas management means maintaining efficiently and effectively to current organizational arrangements. Leaders are people who shape the goals, motivations, and actions of others [2, 4, 6]. Locating the concepts of leadership and management, Bush and Glover have explained leadership as a process of