Bhai E Rahman,
In any count it is a dangerous slide, not only in our education status but in social status as well. Social scientists should come up with corrective measures. As the analysis suggests poverty (against the allowance given) is not the root cause, notice, being the poorest division Rajshahi's count is only 33 %. However, poverty is the greater element- please read on. Only weeks back I called an old government Degree college's principal. She was narrating to me how the students from poor family could not or with much difficulties registered for their HSC exams. It is a real burden for them. (isn't it for the nation as well?). You the expatriate can help these poor students and so on... If we really need to improve, we need to retain much more than the article indicates. I believe we all can play a role. Look forward to your feed back. (on a different note – I am a great fan of New Age's editorials, I am sure you've read the editorial on the subject same day). Haque
--- On Tue, 3/2/09, Ezajur Rahman <ezajur.rahman@q8.com> wrote:
From: Ezajur Rahman <ezajur.rahman@q8.com>
Subject: [ALOCHONA] 42pc of students drop out this SSC session
To: alochona@yahoogroups.com
Date: Tuesday, 3 February, 2009, 2:22 PM
42pc of students drop out this SSC session
Courtesy New Age 3/2/09 Siddiqur Rahman Khan Above 42 per cent of the students enrolled in Class IX in the 2007-2008 academic session, to become eligible to take the SSC and equivalent examinations scheduled to start from February 15, 2009, have dropped out.
'Early marriage of female students, enrolment of a significant number of female students only for getting stipends, registration of some fake students in Class IX for retaining the licence of some schools and madrassahs have been identified by the education boards as the reasons for such a great number of drop-outs.
Besides, some students failed the exams for promotion from Class IX to Class X while some failed to pass the SSC qualifying tests, and some male students went abroad for jobs, according to the boards.
According to the statistics available with the education ministry, in the 2007-08 session more than 12.67 lakh students enrolled in Class IX in ten education boards, but only 7.33 lakh students are going to take the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and equivalent examinations in 2009.
The percentage of drop-outs is 42.15 this year, which is somewhat of an improvement since it was 48 per cent in 2008.
More than 10.63 lakh students, including some 3.3 lakh students who failed in the SSC exams in the last two or three years, have registered to take the SSC and equivalent exams of 2009.
The Sylhet education board topped drop-out percentage rate among the ten education boards with 57.25, while the Rajshahi education board is at the bottom of the list with 32.76 per cent.
The drop-out rate is 50.76 per cent in the Comilla board, 44.19 in Dhaka, 43.01 in Jessore, 44.84 in Chittagong , 43.11 in Barisal and 33.15 in Dinajpur.
Students are going to take SSC exams for the first time this year under the newly formed Dinajpur board.
In the Madrassah board the percentage of drop-outs is 36.62 and in the technical education board it is 54.32.
'The government should launch a special drive to reduce such a huge drop-out rate,' said an education board chairman. 'Stern action should be taken against the dishonest school and madrassah authorities who enrol students only to get stipend benefits.'
'Besides, the students who fail in the final exams of Class VIII should not allowed to get admission to Class IX any more,' he said.
The current drop-out rate in primary schools is about 48 per cent despite various efforts to reduce it, according to official statistics. |