 Team Reports |
Education in BangladeshRon King — Bobcaygeon, ON Each day during the distributions we experienced the joy, the smiles and the laughter of the children as they received their own special bedkit. Proudly wearing their new clothes, they returned to their homes either on foot, in the back of a truck, in a bus or at one distribution on a riverboat -- a four-hour journey. SCAW guidelines state that to be eligible to receive a bedkit the child must attend school. Sadly, every day we witnessed large numbers of children standing in silence and watching as the distribution proceeded. They were the ones with the sad eyes, outside the fence, or behind the ropes. The Rotary and Lions members indicated to us that these children did not go to school. 
The government of Bangladesh started universal primary education in 1981 and introduced compulsory primary education in 1993. In addition, the government of Bangladesh fixed a target "Education for All" by 2010 to eradicate illiteracy from the country. Daily we were greeted by ten to fifteen young children living within a stones throw of our residence in Dhaka. Their homes were made of cardboard, sheet metal and bamboo poles. They were excited to receive some bananas, a tennis ball, or any kind of treat. It was obvious that they did not go to school. With the motto "Education for All," we asked ourselves: why weren't all of these children in school? In a family of four or five children, money is not available to pay the fees or to buy books and pencils. In the rural areas children go to work in the rice fields or tend the fishing nets to help supplement the small family income. In the urban areas we witnessed many children working, often with their whole family, breaking bricks to make gravel. Perhaps most disturbing were the young children darting in and out of traffic begging for taka (Bangladesh currency).
With little opportunity to pay for an education, what happens to many of these young people? With limited skills, many of the girls are employed in the garment industry and are paid a very small monthly wage. Others may earn a living on the streets. Several conditions limit the educational opportunities for the young people of Bangladesh. The political instability in the country and the inability of the poor to access the system as it now stands are just two factors that need to be addressed before the claim of "Education for All" can become a reality. |
The education system is divided into 4 levels; Primary: Grades 1 to 5, Secondary: Grades 6 to 10, Higher Secondary: Grades 11 to 12, and degree programmes. A Madrasa system, which emphasizes Islam-based education, is growing within the country. There are eleven government universities, and twenty private ones within Bangladesh. Being unable to pay for education limits the opportunities for most children to attend. The BRAC [Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee] is providing alternative schooling to children who are struggling or to some who attend at hours convenient to their work schedule. BRAC University also offers opportunities otherwise unavailable to these students.