THE lofty success story of the government in the Education sector is a misnomer in a true sense as it is the most devastated sector that needs more years to regain the lost glory. Certainly, education is the single most sector which could influence every pros and cons of a state and supply the future leaders to lead the country towards economic and political advancement. Unfortunately, from primary to tertiary level, Education sector in the country has grown up, over the years, as the breeding ground of corruption that further destroys the entire society. Despite a reiteration of cracking down corruption by high-ups, it is being contrarily nurtured up as the society itself is grasped by corruption which begins from the admission of a child into a school.
Media reports said that schools and colleges across the country are asking for additional money in the SSC and HSC registrations ignoring sanctions imposed by the High Court. In the on-going school admission process in the Dhaka City’s Public Schools some 72,700 young learners are contesting for only 9000 seats. In the tests, viva encompasses a significant importance in selecting the final ones for admission. Conventional wisdom suggests, this will open a scope for yielding influence or even corruption in the buying or selling of seats illegally.
The guardians are forced to admit their wards to government or private schools thorough a hefty process of manipulation including cash bribes, though called donations. Moreover, the fragmented education system in the primary to the higher secondary contribute in splitting the national integrity as the education itself enables discrimination in the society which also contradicts with Article 17(a) of the Constitution which reads as: “The State shall adopt effective measures for the purpose of establishing a uniform, mass oriented and universal system of education and extending free and compulsory education to all children to such stages as may be determined by law”. Alongside of schooling, the coaching centre culture takes away time which the kids could have better spent in recreation in the early stage of life as they are forced to compete unnecessarily.
While a child takes necessary preparation to sit for the Primary School Certificate exams, the state apparatus leaks out question papers that ruin the dynamism and desire of the future leaders. And while the pass rate in public examinations represents the success or failure of the government, the authority wishfully shows the high pass rate, which does not show the true quality of education. If a child comes out thorough the dysfunctional system, s/he will perpetuate the system. Question paper leakages from primary school certificate examinations to Public Service Commission examinations, including, SSC, HSC, University admission tests, and jobs tests are a regular in the country. Due to this unethical practice the sanctity of exams and the quality of education have taken a bad hit. Also, principles of healthy competition are being affected. The government has failed to adopt any deterrent measures to preserve the sanctity of public exams.
