To improve education, we need to make teaching a lucrative profession

Today's world is highly conscious of ensuring quality education, because the economic development of a nation primarily depends on human capital development. Education ensures this human capital development by transforming human beings into valuable economic resources.

It is well known that developed nations excel in education and use it as a weapon to fight against poverty and other socio-economic problems. Sir Fazle Hasan Abed said, "Education is the most important development intervention that one can make in a human life." Hence, the United Nations and its member states rightly adopted 'Quality Education' as the fourth goal of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Bangladesh has made significant progress in education, in various quantitative areas, since its inception. However, the quality of education has been greatly ignored and has been criticised for many decades. 

Bangladesh ranks eighth in terms of population and is one of the most densely populated nations in the world. This should serve as a compelling reason for Bangladesh to prioritise investment in developing human capital. 

Although we seem very committed to ensuring quality education at all levels, our budget for education does not fully reflect the level of commitment we generally perceive. According to World Bank data, Bangladesh allocates a smaller percentage of its GDP to education than its regional peers. 

Education may differ significantly from other sectors of the economy due to its heavy reliance on the quality of teachers. As the saying goes, education is the backbone of a nation, and we can assume that teachers are the backbone of education, since they are often referred to as the architects of a nation.

Every year, thousands of students in the country graduate from various branches of education. Many of our graduates perform exceptionally well in their workplaces, both at home and abroad. Meritorious university graduates who plan to settle in the country dream of becoming civil servants, bankers, doctors, engineers, university teachers, journalists, corporate executives, and more. But what about teaching in primary and secondary schools, higher secondary colleges, technical and vocational institutes, and other similar levels of education?

Nowadays, teaching in those sectors may have become the least preferred choice for highly talented individuals in the country. The same can be said of BCS cadre choices, where the education cadre is less popular than other cadre services, with a few exceptions. 

The candidates, however, should not be held accountable for such decisions. In fact, this is not a problem with the candidates, but a problem with the policy and system. We have failed to establish teaching as a dream profession. We cannot expect high-quality education from teachers who are not well compensated.

One of the principles of economics is that human beings are highly rational in their economic decision-making. Employment decisions are undoubtedly rational, as our graduates compare the compensation, career growth, social status, and other benefits of the teaching profession with those of other professions. 

From this perspective, many talented individuals feel discouraged from pursuing careers not only in primary, secondary, vocational, and related educational levels but also, at times, in tertiary education in Bangladesh.

Studies show that many teachers in private universities report high turnover intentions due to job dissatisfaction and inadequate facilities. Although many talented graduates may initially choose to enter teaching due to their passion, some may become frustrated and decide to switch professions.

If we want to upgrade our education quality, we must ensure that the best graduates of universities aspire to become primary, secondary, college and university-level teachers. We should not compromise the quality of teachers but establish standardised criteria. 

Proper career growth and a social and economic protection system must be ensured for teachers. Doctors care for the physical body and the mental and emotional well-being, while teachers cultivate the mind, soul, moral values, skills, and overall human development.

Without a sound soul, nothing can operate as it should. This emphasises the significance of education, a realisation we must grasp as soon as possible. It is time for a philosophical upgrade, as Bangladesh is no longer a poor nation. We must upgrade our attitude towards education and the teaching profession.

When creating a budget for the education sector, we often aim to be economical in saving government funds, in other words, taxpayers' money. Allocating a substantial budget to education will increase total government expenditure, but the nation will benefit from significant opportunities gained. Philosophically, we should not view this as mere expenditure; instead, we must recognise it as the most valuable investment we can make now.

The potential return on this investment might include a better-skilled workforce, economic growth, and poverty reduction through improved job opportunities, enhanced social development, increased civic engagement, and stimulated innovation and research, which are crucial for addressing national challenges and fostering prosperity. 

Additionally, with the challenge of the Fourth Industrial Revolution ahead of us, we must employ the best teachers to prepare the best citizens for a sustainable tomorrow. Thus, investing a significant budget in the education sector is closely connected to our fundamental existence and is the best choice for the nation to pursue.

Sayed Azharul Islam is an Assistant Professor at Khulna University. azharulsayed@hrm.ku.ac.bd. Dr Sheikh Ashiqurrahman Prince is a Professor at the Bangladesh Institute of Governance and Management (BIGM). sheikh.prince@bigm.edu.bd

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of The Business Standard.