Textbook distribution

Textbook distribution ceremony and our education
The Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina introduced the textbook distributing ceremony at Gonobhaban on 31 December 2010 handing over a set of books to one student of each class up to class nine under general, madrasa and technical education board. This festival will continue for seven days as some students might be absent on the first day. The Education Minister hoped that every student would get textbooks by this week. He said “ We have our buffer stock of primary and secondary books ready in case of any shortage. “ The government has aimed at distributing around 23.20 crore books to students of primary, secondary , ebtadai and vocational class of this academic year. Of them 10.45 crore copies are for primary students and 12.75 crore for secondary level. NCTB officials said around 99.07 percent of books are for secondary students and 98.78 percent of primary books had already reached the schools. The government this year for the first time took initiative to print over five crore copies of textbooks for class 1, 2 and 3 through international bidding. Of the books Indian printers got the contract for around 2.98 crore copies. It actually displeased the local publishers.
Our text books must be students friendly. Relevant colourful pictures will attract the learners. Our existing textbooks miserably failed to attract the learners neither the pictures nor the pages and prints and articulation is not good enough. These things call for serious government care. Free distribution of books does not have full merit for some reasons. First the price of text books board is not beyond the buying capacity of even the now income people. Secondly, textbooks don’t cover and satisfy the educational needs and full circle. Stundents must buy subsidiary and helping books published in the private sectors by different printing and publishing authorities. Their price is much higher than the textbooks. Guardians find it difficult to buy those books because of higher price. The price of one such book can cover the whole set of NCTB books but NCTB books don’t deal with the questions and problems critically to prepare the students for the tradiotanl and semi-traditional examinations. Necessarily students must depend on the privately published books which contain the necessary elements and exercises reflecting our almost traditional questions but they discourage our students to be creative enough. Teachers are also not well equipped to satisfy the needs of the students harping on the textbooks only. Hence, the books in the private sector are being printed and sold establishing itself as a thriving business.
Addressing the function, the prime minister directed the authorities concerned to introduce e-book system at the earliest possible time to ensure more availability of textbooks. She said book would facilitate all particularly the expatriate Bangladeshis’ who are keen to educate their children with the national textbook curriculum. She also underscored proper utilization of governments’ Workers Welfare Fund to set up schools in other countries where Bangladeshi expatriates live in large number. Undoubtedly the proposal retains much merit. The earlier it can be done, the better. She asked the education ministry to reduce school syllabus to ease pressure on the kids and also said “But the syllabus should include the history of 1971 Liberation War as well as glorious history and national culture and tradition. “ She urged the students not to rely on note books and instead concentrate more on textbooks. Prime Minister further said that the students would go to school with few books. There should be more books in the library. Students will read them in the library. These proposals also need to be taken into consideration as our students seem to be overburdened with their various kinds of books. Their learning can be hastened and developed through well organized and very student friendly environment in the institutions. Again, innovative question patterns will discourage the available note books and highly qualified and creative teachers must be identified to prepare questions giving salute to very traditional ones. Otherwise, only giving free textbooks does not have any value, to speak the truth.
Prime minister further said, “ Government is working to introduce free education up to graduate level for both male and female students in all government educational institutions. This declaration deserves appreciation in one sense but calls for further thinking as the students of government institution will enjoy free educational benefit who constitute only the two percent of whole student community. When free education will be offered to the students only in the government institutions it will invite further corruption in the education sector. Almost all the best educational institutional are run in the private sector and the number of better institutions prove scarce in comparison with the population. To get admission in these institutions mad competition prevails which calls for a better solution. Again, the cost of schooling in these institutions proves abnormal. The mad contest in the private sector occurs due to scarcity of seats and extremely poor quality education in the government schools and colleges compel many middle class guardians to send their wards to English Medium schools. This is another sector to trap the guardians into spending money for buying education abnormally. When the responsibilities of education rest on the state,,quite a good number of guardians are forced to send their wards to English medium schools. Tuition fees in government schools and colleges are already very low. Full exemption of fees will hardly put any influence on education particularly quality. It does not affect many guardians to pay Taka 20 as tuition fees. These fees in non-government schools are abnormally higher. In English Medium schools fees are further abnormally higher. Government’s sincere intervention is essential to deal with this affair without planning to make tuition free education in government institutions. If the government really wants to bring some changes in this field, tuition free education can be introduced in the rural areas ranging from than headquarters to remote villages. In the cities it is not necessary on mass to distribute textbooks freely when the guardians are to spend about seventy to eighty thousand taka per year for private tuition for each student which is a serious disease and the authorities must give serious attention to this paradoxical fact.

Printing and publishing books in the private sector has emerged as a potential sector. This sector contributes a great deal to discourage the creativity of the learners. On the other hand, this sector has employed a good number of people lessening burden of unemployment in the country. These two things must be taken into consideration and they can be engaged in some fruitful and really creative process of teaching learning process. To make a meaningful change in this sector, existing established printing and publishing industry should be utilized fruitfully as we cannot close this industry. A real bridge can be established between the government and non-government printing and publishing industry. Change in the question pattern can bring qualitative change in education. The same pattern of question year after year not only makes teachers obtuse, it damages the creativity of the students and hampers to bloom their hidden potentials.
Commercialization of education, urban rural divide, mushroom growth of coaching centers, poor quality teaching, lack of proper training of teachers, failing to attract the bright students to teaching profession are the real challenges of education. Governments need to give serious attention to these issues. Education is not hampered because of the lack of textbooks. Textbooks could have been distributed only among the rural and hardcore poor community students who are really unable to buy textbooks.

Md. Masum Billah
Program Manager: BRAC Education Program
Email: mmbillah2000@yahoo.com