Improving teacher-student ratio a must

The teacher-student ratio-widely regarded as one of the key indicators of educational quality-is deteriorating alarmingly, particularly in the country's secondary education system. One of the primary causes of the worsening ratio is the failure to recruit enough teachers to keep pace with the steady rise in student enrolment. While increasing enrolment is a positive indicator of access to education, it also demands proportional investment in teacher recruitment, training, and infrastructure-an area where the authorities continue to falter. Among the major reasons behind the growing gap is the inertia in filling vacant teaching positions. Whenever a few posts fall vacant due to retirement, death, or resignation, the response is neither prompt nor adequate. Rather than initiating timely recruitment, the authorities tend to wait until a large number of posts accumulate-sometimes taking five or six years-to justify a large-scale hiring drive. This approach, aimed more at reducing administrative workload and cost, is fundamentally flawed, leaving schools understaffed for prolonged periods.

Worse still, this reflects a broader policy failure: the government's virtual abdication of responsibility for secondary education. With the vast majority of secondary schools being privately run, the government appears to have all but given up on expanding public secondary education. This hands-off approach is deeply concerning. Since independence, only a dozen secondary schools have been established by successive governments, and merely 60 institutions have been nationalised. Presently, there are only 339 government-run secondary schools in the country-just 3.0 per cent of the total. This means a staggering 97 per cent of secondary schools are privately operated, many of which charge fees that are unaffordable for most families, especially in urban areas.

This near-total reliance on the private sector has serious implications for equity and quality in education. Private institutions often operate with minimal oversight, leading to disparities in teaching standards, infrastructure, and access. One of the most visible symptoms of this is the declining teacher-student ratio. According to international norms, the ideal ratio for secondary education should be around 1:30. In stark contrast, many government secondary schools in Bangladesh operate with ratios as high as 1:103. Even the national average, as reported in the Bangladesh Education Statistics 2016 draft, stood at 1:41 in 2015 and worsened slightly to 1:42 in 2016. These figures, however, may not accurately reflect conditions in remote or low-lying areas, where the situation is often much worse.

The central issue is not simply the numbers-it's the absence of a coherent strategy for secondary education. The government's approach seems limited to expanding enrolment numbers without a corresponding focus on classroom conditions or learning quality. But enrolment alone cannot ensure meaningful education. Without a conducive learning environment-defined by adequate teacher presence, manageable class sizes, and relevant academic support-students are left struggling. In such overcrowded and under-resourced classrooms, meaningful teacher-student interaction is virtually impossible.

The consequences are evident. Deprived of attention in school, students are turning in ever-growing numbers to private coaching centres, which have mushroomed in every corner of the country, including rural and remote areas. These centres, mostly unregulated and unlicensed, have become the de facto education providers. Poor parents, with limited means, are compelled to spend on private tuition to ensure their children keep up with academic demands.

The rise of private coaching is not just an economic burden-it is a symptom of a failing system. It creates a dual-track education model, where schools are seen as ceremonial spaces while actual learning takes place in coaching centres. This trend is exacerbated by recent changes in the school curriculum, which require greater teacher involvement and student support-resources that are simply unavailable in today's secondary schools.

Reversing this decline calls for urgent and far-reaching reforms. First and foremost, the recruitment process must be overhauled. The current model of periodic, large-scale teacher recruitment is inefficient and harmful. A rolling recruitment system should be established to fill vacancies as they arise. This requires active monitoring of staffing levels and a decentralised response mechanism, allowing local education offices to initiate recruitment in real time.

Equally important is teacher training. With evolving curricula and pedagogical methods, teachers must be equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge. Pre-service and in-service training programmes should be mandatory, ongoing, and aligned with curriculum changes. Existing teachers must be brought under continuous professional development programmes to remain effective in the classroom.

Moreover, boosting the teacher workforce is not enough if quality is compromised. Recruitment should prioritisecompetence, subject-matter expertise, and a genuine commitment to teaching. Only a well-qualified, motivated teaching cadre can improve learning outcomes and restore the credibility of the classroom as the core of education.

These reforms will not be possible without a significant increase in budget allocation for secondary education. Investment is urgently needed in infrastructure, recruitment, teacher training, and school monitoring mechanisms. The current level of public spending falls far short of what is required to address the crisis, let alone to make meaningful progress towards equitable and quality education for all.

So, without immediate and sustained action to improve teacher-student ratios and address the structural weaknesses in school governance and support, the learning crisis will deepen. For a country that aspires to build a skilled and knowledgeable workforce, neglecting this foundational stage of education is not just short-sighted, it is also self-defeating.

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