Bangladesh has done something important: It has brought millions of children into school. More girls are in classrooms, enrollment has expanded, and government schools continue to serve children from some of the country’s most under-resourced communities.
Are children actually learning?
Recent findings from Bangladesh’s Education Sector Analysis 2026 point to persistent learning deficits, dropout, and underinvestment despite progress in access and gender parity.
In other words, Bangladesh has made progress in getting children through the school gate. Now it must ensure that they leave school with real skills.
My own understanding of this problem comes from both ends of the education journey.
As a Teach For Bangladesh Fellow, I worked closely with children in government school communities.
Today, as a university lecturer, I meet students who have travelled further along the same system. The connection is impossible to ignore: What is missed in school often returns as a struggle in higher education.
In government school classrooms, the learning gap is often quiet. A student may sit politely, copy from the board, and even pass exams, while still struggling to read fluently or explain a basic idea in their own words.
Another may memorize English answers without understanding the language. In mathematics, a student may know the formula but not the problem it is meant to solve.
These children are not less capable. They are underserved.
Too often, our system treats grade promotion as proof of learning. When students move forward without foundational literacy, numeracy, and comprehension, the gap widens every year.
By the time they reach university, the consequences are visible. Many students are sincere and ambitious, but some struggle with academic reading, critical writing, classroom discussion, and independent thinking. These are not sudden weaknesses. They are the result of years of learning through memorization rather than understanding.
Government school teachers stand at the centre of this challenge, but they cannot fix it alone. Many teach large classes with limited resources, mixed learning levels, and pressure to complete the syllabus.
In such classrooms, the easiest thing is to teach in the middle and move on. The hardest thing is to notice the child who has stopped understanding.
That child must become the centre of reform.
Bangladesh needs a serious national focus on foundational learning in government schools. Every school should regularly assess whether children can read with understanding, write clearly, calculate confidently, and explain what they learn.
These assessments do not need to be intimidating or exam-like. They can be simple classroom tools that help teachers know where each child stands.
Remedial learning must also become normal. A child who has fallen behind should not be labelled weak or slow. They should receive targeted support before the gap becomes permanent. Catch-up classes, peer learning groups, reading corners, and level-based activities can make a meaningful difference if they are implemented consistently.
At the same time, teacher support must become more practical. Teachers do not need more abstract instructions. They need usable strategies for large classrooms, low-cost learning materials, assessment tools, and continuous mentoring. If policy does not reach the teacher standing in front of 50 students, it remains paperwork.
The obsession with memorization must also change. Exams matter, but education cannot be reduced to answer reproduction. A student who can repeat a model answer may pass, but a student who can think, question, explain, and solve is the one who is truly educated.
The children in government schools today will become tomorrow’s university students, workers, teachers, entrepreneurs, and citizens. If they leave school without basic learning skills, the country pays the price in higher education, employment, productivity, and social mobility.
Getting children into school was never the final destination. It was the beginning. Now the state must make a stronger promise: Every child in a government school deserves not only a seat in the classroom, but a real chance to learn.
Sirajum Munira Joti is a Teach For Bangladesh Fellowship alumna and currently teaches at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh as a lecturer.