Samir Ranjan Nath

Private supplementary tutoring among primary students in Bangladesh

Using the databases created under Education Watch, a civil society initiative to monitor primary and basic education in Bangladesh, this paper explores trends, socioeconomic differentials and cost in private supplementary tutoring among primary students and its impact on learning achievement. The rate of primary school students getting access to private supplementary tutoring is increasing at two percentage points per year and reached 31% in 2005. Incidence of private tutoring was greater among boys and urban students than respective counterparts. Educated parents and well‐off families were more likely to arrange supplementary tutoring for their children. A wide variation in the cost for private tutoring prevailed. The tutees spent 46% of their total private expenditure for education on supplementary tutoring. Supplementary tutoring helped students learn more than those who had no such support. Private tutors for primary school students have become a well‐accepted norm. Finally, a number of social implications are discussed.

Enrolment at primary level: gender difference disappears in Bangladesh

Abstract In the recent past, there have been a number of new initiatives to improve the access to primary education in many developing countries. Such initiatives, which came from the public, private and non-governmental (NGO) sectors, have resulted in improved performance in various efficiency indicators. This paper reports results from a nationwide study in Bangladesh on the levels and changes in enrolment pattern of children at the primary level. The gross enrolment ratio has reached 107% and the net enrolment rate 77%. Gender gap has disappeared; in fact girls have surpassed boys! However, the increase in enrolment taking place is not at the desired speed; it is less than one percentage point per year. The government is still the major provider of primary education with two-thirds of all enrolments, but non-formal schools run by NGOs also have important contributions to the positive changes that are taking place in Bangladesh.

Children's Access to Pre-School Education in Bangladesh.

Using the Education Watch household survey database, this paper explores children’s access to pre‐school education in Bangladesh. Participation in pre‐school education has been increasing in Bangladesh at the rate of 0.6% per year and the net enrolment rate was found to be 13.4% in 2005. Enrolment of over‐aged children in pre‐school education made the gross enrolment ratio as high as 30.5%. However, over half of the four to five year olds at school were actually enrolled in primary school and not in pre‐school. Moreover, 71% of the four‐ to five‐year group were out of school. Only a third of the four‐ to five‐year‐old children enrolled in schools had the opportunity to attend the English‐medium kindergartens or NGO‐run non‐formal schools, both of which provide better quality pre‐school education. Urban children, especially those with educated parents and from more privileged socio‐economic backgrounds, were more likely to have access to pre‐school education. The lack of a common pre‐school curriculum seems to have created further inequity among children at this very early age. An educational policy targeting poor and socially disadvantaged children with support from both the state and current pre‐school providers is urgently needed to provide four‐ to five‐year‐old children appropriate education for their needs.

Influence of socioeconomic factors on basic competencies of children in Bangladesh

The effects of selected socioeconomic factors on basic competencies of children in Bangladesh were studied using primary data on 2520 children from all over the country. The residence of the child, years of schooling, parental education and economic status of the household were found to be important determinants of basic competencies of children.

The role of pre-school education on learning achievement at primary level in Bangladesh

Abstract This paper examines the impact of pre-school education on learning achievement at primary level in Bangladesh. Evidence from learning achievement test and household and school-related data were obtained from 7093 pupils attending 440 primary schools in Bangladesh. Findings suggest that a small proportion (15.3%) of primary school pupils attended pre-school. Pupils from educated parents and well-off families were more likely to attend. In principle, however, attendance at pre-school did not predict later learning achievement at primary level, but a range of socio-demographic, school-related and additional educational factors did have an impact. It is concluded that further research is warranted to examine the quality of pre-school provision offered in Bangladesh and the qualifications of professionals working with young children in these centres.

Health knowledge of rural Bangladeshi children: Does BRAC's non-formal schools programme have any impact?

This paper explores the impact of the non-formal primary education programme of the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) on raising health knowl edge of rural Bangladeshi children. Three groups of children — graduates of the BRAC programme, formal school learners and children who never went to school —were assessed with an instrument containing six health knowledge items. A sample of 720 children, equally distributed by study groups and sex, was randomly selected. Data were collected from five areas where a socio-demographic surveillance system was in operation. This study reveals that the Programme graduates were more likely to have higher levels of health knowledge than the children of the other two groups. The impact of the Programme may be due to its extra emphasis on enhancing the positive influence of education in the lives of the rural population.

Causes Behind Differential Performance in Various Types of BRAC Schools

Differential learning achievement of the graduates of three types of BRAC schools viz., BRAC primary school, BRAC community school and BRAC formal school came out through a recent study with some hypothetical explanation of the reasons behind such difference. This study aims to fill this gap through an in-depth and qualitative exploration. Observation, in-depth interview and focus group discussion were the techniques applied using various checklists. Although the aim and objectives of all three types of schools were similar to those of the national level, the formal school students had better home background, qualified teachers, longer contact hour, use of full range of government prepared textbooks, and other enabling conditions in the schools, thus they had better performance compared to the other two types of school. In terms of value addition, the BPS model has contributed more than others with their limited wealth.

Children's acquisition of health knowledge through compulsory primary schooling in Bangladesh

Abstract This paper investigates the health knowledge of children in Bangladesh completing the five-year cycle of compulsory primary education. Data were taken from a nationally representative sample survey of 2509 children who came from 186 schools. Eight health knowledge items, available in the textbooks and corresponding to four primary level terminal competencies, were included in the assessment instrument. The analysis revealed that overall performance of the students was poor and they did not acquire acceptable levels of health knowledge. A wide variation in the knowledge of different items was also found, from 28.5 to 69.1 per cent. The students who were younger in age, affiliated with the urban schools, with educated parents and access to mass media, were more likely to have better health knowledge. There was, however, no gender variation. With high and increasing enrolment at primary level, there is a strong case for more and effective utilisation of the opportunity to foster health education in Bangladesh.