Noman Mosharef :
All kinds of educational institutions remained closed for about 17 months in the country. As such, the government has taken initiatives to continue educational activities through online using television and cell phone to minimise the loss.
The pupils from city had benefited comprising the rural students. According to Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information and Statistics (BANBEIS) about 94 per cent of rural students were out of online class and 76 per cent from television class.
Meanwhile, during the Covid-19, there has been a big change in the reading habits of the students. According to BANBEIS’s survey, the student who studied 3-7 hours a day before Corona pandemic was 60 per cent, whereas the rate of students studying for 3-7 hours has come down to 27 per cent.
On the other hand, before Corona, the number of students who did not study outside the school was almost zero. However, the number of such students has increased at an alarming rate during the Corona period. According to the survey, the number of such students who did not study at the time of corona period is 38 per cent in rural areas, 24 per cent in upazila level and 22 per cent in city corporation area.
In the first half of this year, BANBEIS conducted a survey of students and parents in different parts of the country to find out the impact of Corona on the education system.
About 6,516 students and parents from 240 secondary level educational institutions in 38 unions of 19 upazilas took part in it. The upazilas include nine villages, three towns, two hills, two chars and a tea garden. Institution-based survey was conducted in 144 educational institutions in rural areas, 50 in upazila level and 46 in city corporation area. Besides, individual
level survey was conducted among 1,958 students in rural areas, 648 students at upazila level and 652 students and parents of city corporation area.
According to BANBEIS’s report, about 36 of the 240 secondary schools were able to attend online class. In other words, online teaching was possible in 15 per cent of the institutions. The average student participation rate in online classes was 15 per cent.
The remaining 85 per cent of students were out of online lessons. Of these, rural students were the most backward in online teaching. According to the survey, 6.25 per cent students in rural areas, 12 per cent in upazila level and 45 per cent in city corporation areas took part in online classes.
Similarly, the students of the village were lagging behind in getting the teaching facilities broadcast on Sangsad Television. According to the survey, only 24 per cent students in rural areas are covered by the lessons broadcast on Sangsad TV.
In other words, 76 per cent of the students who took part in the survey did not watch the class on television. Among the upazila level students, 36 per cent were under TV teaching. And 70 per cent of students in the City Corporation area have watched television classes.
Experts say that due to infrastructural weaknesses of information technology, inadequacy of devices, lack of teacher training and lack of awareness, rural students are being deprived of online teaching. As a result, great inequality is being created in the learning of students in rural and urban areas.
Asked about this, Rasheda K Chowdhury, Executive Director of the mass literacy campaign (Gonosakhorata Obhizan), said that such a survey conducted by a government research institute was commendable. We hope it will be made public. It will play a role in the planning of government and non-government organisations.
She said the data that emerged from the survey is not at all promising. Similar findings emerged from our research and field observations. In fact, both the Ministries of Education have made a lot of efforts during the Corona period, but perhaps we have not been able to reach the mark.
