State of primary education deplorable in Ctg

Unaware of danger, a girl stands under the dilapidated roof of Ghatfarhadbeg Munshi Abdul Aziz Government Primary School. PHOTO: STAR

With more than 1,000 posts of headmaster and assistant teacher vacant and existing schools having little or no facilities, the situation is getting all the more frustrating. Worst still, the number of dropouts is alarmingly on the rise.

In the said areas, there are 1,635 primary schools and around 9,000 teachers. Besides, there are around 1500 primary educational institutions, including registered schools, community schools and madrasas.

Fatikchhari, the largest police station (thana) of the district, topped the list of ignominy with 88 villages having no primary schools followed by Patiya (13 villages), Lohagara (11), Chandanaish (9), Banskhali (8), Raozan (5), Boalkhali (5), Anwara (3), Satkania (3) and Sitakunda (2).

The existing primary schools also lack facilities like drinking water and toilet, sources said. Around 500 schools do not have any arrangement for drinking water for the students while around 350 schools run without any toilet.

"Students carry bottle or flask for water with them but the real problem is absence of toilet, for which most of them especially the girls are to suffer severely," said a teacher at Sitakunda.

He said "We draw attention of the local administration and political leaders time and again but they had no time to pay little heed to our cries."

The offshore island Sandwip is in most appalling state as far as water and toilet facilities are concerned. Here, 65 schools have no arrangement for drinking water while 50 have no toilet. Sandwip is followed closely by Patiya, Banskhali, Chandanaish, Raozan and Fatikchhari in this regard.

Lack of teachers is another reason for degrading the quality of education in Chittagong region. The primary schools of Mirersarai have a shortage of 114 teachers, Raozan 104, Fatikchhari 102, Banshkhali 86, Satkania 82, Rangunia 78, Sandwip 76, Anwara 56, Chandanaish 52, Chandgaon 44, Patiya 43, Boalkhali 38, Bandar 30, Double Mooring 25, Hathazari 18, Panchlaish 15 and Sitakunda 11.

Although the ratio of enrolment at the primary level is satisfactory, the number of dropouts has been mounting. Of the thanas, 10 have recorded with more than 20 percent dropouts. Boalkhali has the highest number (40%) followed by Patiya (34%), Chandanaish (32%), Sitakunda (28%), Satkania (27%), Lohagara (26%), Rangunia (23%), Banskhali (22%), Chandgaon (21%), Anwara (21%), Panchlaish (18%), Hathazari (18%), Fatikchhari (17%), Kotwali (14%), Sandwip (11%), Pahartali (10%), Mirersarai (10%), Double Mooring (7%) and Bandar (6%).

An official said the government has a plan to appoint 6,000 new teachers for the primary schools across the country in 2006 and if it is implemented in time the quality of education in primary schools will improve in Chittagong as well as in the country.

"For lack of optimum teachers we can't carry the inspection work of the existing schools regularly," he said, adding that once the schools have sufficient teachers and staffs they would do good for the nation and the number of dropouts would come down as well.