The broken ladder: Analysing the present and future of Bangladesh’s education system
Classrooms are full and textbooks are free, but Bangladesh’s education system is faltering. Years of political experiments and outdated teaching methods have left the education system in crisis
When Happy Khondoker, a primary school teacher from rural Pabna, asked her fourth-grade students to read a short passage from their Bangla textbook, only a few could manage more than a sentence without stumbling.
One student, visibly anxious, confessed he had never really understood what he was reading. Despite attending school for years, he still could not read fluently — a reality for many students across Bangladesh.
This is the face of a deepening crisis, and it is called "learning poverty". While Bangladesh has made notable progress in increasing access to education since independence, what children are actually learning inside classrooms remains a troubling question.
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Gap between enrolment and education
Bangladesh has nearly universal primary school enrolment. Classrooms are full, textbooks are free, and attendance is often mandatory. Yet, this success in numbers masks a systemic failure in quality.
Dr Ahmed Ahsan, Director of the Policy Research Institute (PRI), speaking at a policy dialogue jointly organised by Agami Incorporation and the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE), pinpointed the core of the issue and said, "The major challenge is the learning crisis. Children are going to school, but they are not learning."
His observation aligns with findings from various national and international assessments that show a majority of children completing primary education cannot read or do basic arithmetic at grade level.
But the problem is systemic, rooted in underfunded schools, outdated teaching methods, untrained teachers, and a rigid curriculum that fails to engage learners.
Teachers as victims of a broken system
In the same dialogue, several educators and researchers explored this pressing issue.
Economist Syed Akhtar Mahmood said, "Real learning only happens when we teach children to use their intelligence, making them productive and innovative. We say education is for life, but what are we actually teaching in our classrooms? Just what is in the books?"
Dilruba Chowdhury, Programme Manager at EdTech, shared how her organisation is working to change that, mentioning the integration of tools like Khan Academy Bangla and establishing Centres of Excellence aimed at training teachers.
"We are working on personalised education methods through these initiatives, focusing on enhancing teacher capacity," she said.
However, the introduction of a new curriculum has left many teachers feeling lost, particularly in rural and under-resourced areas.
Nafisa Khanam, an educator who has been actively involved in the curriculum implementation process, stated her concerns. She said, "We cannot just throw a new curriculum at teachers and expect change. They need proper direction, clarity, and continuous support."
Poor planning, corruption and policy experiments
It is not just poor training and infrastructure. The education system has also suffered from what some call "policy experiments" — frequent and often untested changes in exam systems, curriculum formats, and grading policies that leave teachers, students, and parents confused.
Professor Dr Bidhan Ranjan Roy Poddar, adviser of primary and mass education of the interim government of Bangladesh, also acknowledged this in a views-exchange meeting organised by the Education Office of Lakshmipur.
He said, "If primary education is weak, we will end up producing unskilled and incapable citizens. We must ensure that underperforming schools and officials are held responsible. Education officers must perform their duties with full awareness."
Real learning only happens when we teach children to use their intelligence, make them productive and innovative. We say education is for life, but what are we actually teaching in our classrooms? Just what is in the books?
Under successive regimes — particularly in recent years — the education system has been used as a platform for political experimentation rather than evidence-based policy.
A key criticism from many experts is that "one absurd experiment after another" has been imposed — from sudden exam cancellations to shifting curriculum goals — all without preparing the people responsible for implementing them.
Policy meets reality
The gap between policy and ground-level reality is stark. A 2019 World Bank report noted that Bangladeshi schools lose thousands of instructional hours every year due to unplanned closures, poor supervision, and teacher shortages — especially in key subjects like science, maths, and English.
A report by EMRD (Education and Management Research and Development) also found that a large number of teachers felt "unclear" or "unsupported" in implementing the new curriculum, especially in rural schools.
Many schools lacked the necessary resources or digital infrastructure to adopt new learning models, despite the government's vision for a more student-centred approach.
Way forward
If Bangladesh is to achieve its goal of becoming a developed nation by 2041, it must confront the education crisis with urgency and honesty.
First, education spending must increase — both in volume and impact. Currently, the country spends less than 2% of its GDP on education, far below the UNESCO recommendation of 4–6%.
Second, teaching must be professionalised. Teacher recruitment, training, and evaluation systems need urgent reform. Corruption in appointments must be rooted out.
Third, learning outcomes must be prioritised over vanity metrics like enrolment or pass rates. This means implementing regular, meaningful assessments and acting on the results.
And lastly, stop the policy experiments. Bangladesh needs a long-term, stable education framework based on research and community input — not one that shifts with every change in political leadership.
The future of the students is still uncertain. But if there is one lesson to draw from the voices of experts and the stories from classrooms, it is this: a broken education system will not fix itself with slogans or new textbooks. It must be rebuilt — thoughtfully, consistently.
