Unreasonable rise in tuition fees

The government must ensure that students and guardians do not become victims of unfair decisions of the school authorities

Rise in tuition fees without any prior notice in various private schools in the capital has become a cause of concern for guardians at the beginning of the new year. According to a recent report published in this newspaper, tuition fees increase every year maximum by Tk 200/300, but this year it is almost double the amount. Since the vast majority of students who get admitted to these schools are from families belonging to fixed income groups, the additional money is indeed a burden for them.
  Protesting this rise in fees, aggrieved guardians of students of some front-ranking schools have already staged demonstrations. As for the hike, school authorities put forward the argument that only 10 per cent of their teachers are presently enjoys MPO facilities of the government. Their salaries have been increased according to the new pay scale, but the rest of the teachers are deprived of the same. Salaries of those teachers will have to be increased from the institutions own funds. So, they are forced to increase tuition fees. This argument does not hold much water, because for increasing the salaries of the non-MPO teachers and employees, even one-fourth of the money to be realized from enhanced tuition fees will not be required.
When the cost of living has gone up significantly, increased tuition fees have added to the woes of the guardians. There is no logic in raising the tuition fees according to the whims and caprices of the school authorities. There should be proper guidelines from the government regarding the realisation of tuition fees by non-government schools.
But at the same time interest of the guardians of students should also be taken into account.  Also there are justified complaints against many private schools’ requirement that uniforms and books be bought exclusively from them and the practice of levying other charges under heads such as extracurricular activities and learning aids.
 The government must ensure that students and guardians do not become victims of unreasonable decisions of the school authorities. The government must also invest in improving the quality of education imparted in government schools so that people have the choice of sending their children to these schools rather than getting fleeced in the name of better education. The school fee should be regularised and some authority should hold the schools accountable for charging such heft fees. Also, the government may consider exempting private schools from paying taxes until public-sector schools improve their standards.

 

 

Unreasonable rise in tuition fees

The government must ensure that students and guardians do not become victims of unfair decisions of the school authorities

Rise in tuition fees without any prior notice in various private schools in the capital has become a cause of concern for guardians at the beginning of the new year. According to a recent report published in this newspaper, tuition fees increase every year maximum by Tk 200/300, but this year it is almost double the amount. Since the vast majority of students who get admitted to these schools are from families belonging to fixed income groups, the additional money is indeed a burden for them. Protesting this rise in fees, aggrieved guardians of students of some front-ranking schools have already staged demonstrations. As for the hike, school authorities put forward the argument that only 10 per cent of their teachers are presently enjoys MPO facilities of the government. Their salaries have been increased according to the new pay scale, but the rest of the teachers are deprived of the same. Salaries of those teachers will have to be increased from the institutions own funds. So, they are forced to increase tuition fees. This argument does not hold much water, because for increasing the salaries of the non-MPO teachers and employees, even one-fourth of the money to be realized from enhanced tuition fees will not be required. When the cost of living has gone up significantly, increased tuition fees have added to the woes of the guardians. There is no logic in raising the tuition fees according to the whims and caprices of the school authorities. There should be proper guidelines from the government regarding the realisation of tuition fees by non-government schools. But at the same time interest of the guardians of students should also be taken into account. Also there are justified complaints against many private schools requirement that uniforms and books be bought exclusively from them and the practice of levying other charges under heads such as extracurricular activities and learning aids. The government must ensure that students and guardians do not become victims of unreasonable decisions of the school authorities. The government must also invest in improving the quality of education imparted in government schools so that people have the choice of sending their children to these schools rather than getting fleeced in the name of better education. The school fee should be regularised and some authority should hold the schools accountable for charging such heft fees. Also, the government may consider exempting private schools from paying taxes until public-sector schools improve their standards.