School enrolment an uphill challenge

The kids don't care about admission test. Rather, they are busy playing during their admission test for KG-1 at Ispahani Public School and College on Monday. PHOTO: STAR

Some 25,000 children get enroled in the city schools every year and most of them compete for 15 schools providing with quality education.

There are around 139 government and non-government schools, excluding 50 English medium and kindergarten schools, in the port city.

Of them, a few reputed schools like Ispahani Public School and College, Bawoa (Bangladesh Women Association) School and College, Saint Mary's School, Angkur and Silver Bells, accommodate about 600 children in KG-One or preparatory classes every year.

Besides, Cantonment Public School and College enrol 70 kids for class four a year.

As such, there is always a mad rush of the guardians for these schools, particularly for Ispahani Public and Colleges and Bawoa School that offer education up to Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) from the preparatory classes.

Some 2000 kids vied for only 100 seats (100 for five seats) in the admission test for the KG-One class at Ispahani Public School held on December 26 at two centres.

There are only nine government schools - Collegiate School, Dr Khastagir Government Girls High School, Chittagong Government School, Government Muslim High School, Nasirabad Govt Boys School, Nasirabad Govt Girls High School, Bakalia Govt Laboratory High School, Government Mohsin High School and Government City Girls High School, for enrolling some 2000 students a year.

Not a single school was added to the list of government school for the last 15 years.

With the beginning of admission process, the schools, mentioned above, face a tremendous rush of the guardians along with their kids in front of the institutions every day.

Over 6,000 admission forms were sold until December 24 for some 2,000 seats at the government high schools in the city, sources at the District Education Office said.

Until Saturday, 1000 admission forms were sold for 120 seats for class five and 1200 for 240 seats for class six at Chittagong Collegiate School, 2000 forms for 230 seats for class six at Khastagir School and 700 forms for 120 seats for class five and 900 forms for 240 seats for class six at Government Muslim High School.

"The number of admission seekers will increase by several times by the time of collecting forms expires on December 27," said Ahmad Safa, headmaster of Muslim High School.

Mohammad Aziz Uddin, headmaster of Chittagong Collegiate School, said the crisis in admission aggravated as no government high school was set up in the city for years when the number of admission seekers has increased by several times.

Anup Mutsuddy, a guardian of an admission seeker at Chittagong Collegiate School, said the admission tests will be held at all city schools the same day leaving no scope for one to appear in the test at more than one school.

Smriti Biswas along with other guardians seen waiting on the school (Collegiate) premises for her son, who was studying in the teachers' quarters ahead of admission test at the school.

She said some senior teachers of the school give coaching to some 30 students each ahead of the admission test charging Tk 2000 to Tk 5000 per head.