Primary Education
Primary education, often referred to as ‘basic education’, is currently compulsory for children aged 6–10 years (Grades 1–5). Although ‘basic’, the current National Education Policy 2010 recommends primary education be extended to Grade 8, and this is currently in the process of implementation by 2018. According to the Directorate of Primary Educat
Secondary Education
The secondary education system has three successive stages: junior secondary (Grades 6–8), secondary (Grades 9 and 10), and higher secondary (Grades 11 and 12). At the junior secondary level, a single general curriculum caters for all students who sit for a public examination at the end of Grade 8 called the Junior Secondary Certificate (JSC). Curr
Tertiary Education
The 2010 National Education Policy specifies as the main aim of higher education the creation and sustainable continuity of new knowledge, as well as the development of skilled manpower in the nation. To achieve this aim, tertiary education of Bangladesh is broadly divided into two categories—general and specialised. The general tertiary education,
Madrasah Education
There are three types of madrasahs (Islamic schools) in Bangladesh: Quomi, Hafizia and Alia. Quomi madrasahs provide only religious (faith-based) education (Ahmed, 2004) with an emphasis on Islamic studies and Arabic literacy (Amin, 2013) and are private—although in recent years, there have been attempts to structure it in accordance with general e
Non-Formal Education
In addition to formal education, more than 1.5 million learners participate in non-formal education (NFE) (Bureau of Non-Formal Education [BNFE]: http://www.bnfe.gov.bd/) in Bangladesh. NFE is a ‘people-activated mode of education delivery’ (Zia-Us-Sabur, 2007, p. 1) and is offered by organisations outside the formal schooling system. It is a ‘purp