Private coaching mushrooms in Khulna defying ban

The government ban on private coaching by schoolteachers is being flouted rampantly in Khulna city. Schoolteachers are coaching at numerous coaching centres here, with some running these centres under their own name and others under the guise of false names. Even worse, some of these coaching centres allegedly charge exorbitant fees but do not teach the students well. The 700-odd private coaching centres in Khulna city are mostly run by teachers of state-owned and private schools and colleges. The most popular subjects for private coaching seem to be mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, English and accounting. Though some institutions direct their teachers to not coach their own students in private, some teachers allegedly force or influence the students in some way to come to them for private tuitions.
According to sources, some ‘popular’ government school and college teachers coach four to six batches of students in private every day, with 30 to 50 students in each batch. They apparently earn Tk. 1 to 2 lakh per month only from these classes.
The deputy director of the secondary and higher secondary education department of Khulna region, TM Zakir Hossain, said they raided different coaching centres and paid surprise visits to different schools to check the attendance of teachers.
“But it is very difficult to monitor the illegal involvement of government teachers by visiting the house of every one of them and every coaching centre,” he added.
He said that the administration would act if it got a specific complaint.
Rabiul Islam Beg, a teacher at Government Iqbalnagar Girls’ High School, is one of those who are allegedly involved with coaching centres. Though he vehemently denied his connection with any coaching centre, Beg admitted that many teachers are continuing in the business.
Teachers’ leader and president of the Bangladesh Freedom Fighters Command Council, Khulna city unit, Prof. Alamgir Kabir, said, “This ban contradicts the impetus to deliver quality education. The government has emphasised the practice of private tuitions to pass the buck.
It has not increased the salaries and allowances of teachers, nor has it done anything to enhance their social status and job security.
In this situation, meritorious people are losing interest in continuing in this profession. The government, too, has to follow certain conditions to stop teachers from coaching in private.”
The coaching business started flourishing during the mid-1980s mainly because of the apathy of the regulatory bodies responsible for ensuring quality education.
Hailing the government decision to ban private tuition as “very good for the development of the education sector”, advocate Babul Hawlader, the member secretary of Khulna Nagorik Samaj, demanded that the illegal commercial coaching centres be shut down immediately.

Private coaching mushrooms in Khulna defying ban

The government ban on private coaching by schoolteachers is being flouted rampantly in Khulna city. Schoolteachers are coaching at numerous coaching centres here, with some running these centres under their own name and others under the guise of false names. Even worse, some of these coaching centres allegedly charge exorbitant fees but do not teach the students well. The 700-odd private coaching centres in Khulna city are mostly run by teachers of state-owned and private schools and colleges. The most popular subjects for private coaching seem to be mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, English and accounting. Though some institutions direct their teachers to not coach their own students in private, some teachers allegedly force or influence the students in some way to come to them for private tuitions. According to sources, some popular government school and college teachers coach four to six batches of students in private every day, with 30 to 50 students in each batch. They apparently earn Tk. 1 to 2 lakh per month only from these classes. The deputy director of the secondary and higher secondary education department of Khulna region, TM Zakir Hossain, said they raided different coaching centres and paid surprise visits to different schools to check the attendance of teachers. But it is very difficult to monitor the illegal involvement of government teachers by visiting the house of every one of them and every coaching centre, he added. He said that the administration would act if it got a specific complaint. Rabiul Islam Beg, a teacher at Government Iqbalnagar Girls High School, is one of those who are allegedly involved with coaching centres. Though he vehemently denied his connection with any coaching centre, Beg admitted that many teachers are continuing in the business. Teachers leader and president of the Bangladesh Freedom Fighters Command Council, Khulna city unit, Prof. Alamgir Kabir, said, This ban contradicts the impetus to deliver quality education. The government has emphasised the practice of private tuitions to pass the buck. It has not increased the salaries and allowances of teachers, nor has it done anything to enhance their social status and job security. In this situation, meritorious people are losing interest in continuing in this profession. The government, too, has to follow certain conditions to stop teachers from coaching in private. The coaching business started flourishing during the mid-1980s mainly because of the apathy of the regulatory bodies responsible for ensuring quality education. Hailing the government decision to ban private tuition as very good for the development of the education sector, advocate Babul Hawlader, the member secretary of Khulna Nagorik Samaj, demanded that the illegal commercial coaching centres be shut down immediately.