A writ petition has been filed seeking a ban on all forms of admission tests for primary school classes from Grade 2 to Grade 5, as well as on supplementary commercial textbooks not approved by the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB).
Lawyer Md Mahmudul Hasan Mamun filed the petition on Monday.
The respondents include the Cabinet secretary, the secretaries of the Secondary and Higher Education Division and the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education, the director general of the Directorate of Primary Education and the chairman of the NCTB.
The petition states that under the Primary Education (Compulsory) Act, 1990, every child has the legal right to unhindered admission to primary education. However, the government’s admission policy for students in government secondary schools subjects young children to competitive admission tests, which the petitioner claims contradicts the law and exceeds the government's legal authority.
It further argues that such tests create fear and cause mental distress among children.
The petition also alleges that educational institutions, in collusion with commercial publishers, are burdening students with supplementary textbooks and guidebooks beyond those approved by the NCTB, in violation of the National Curriculum and Textbook Board Act, 2018.
According to the petition, the excessive academic burden and weight of these books can harm children's physical health, including potentially damaging their spines, while discouraging independent thinking during their formative years.
It also cites the National Education Policy, 2010, which provides for one year of government-approved pre-primary education. However, kindergartens and other educational institutions have introduced additional levels, including Play, Nursery, KG-1 and KG-2, without government approval, the petition says.
The petitioner argues that these practices violate government directives and turn early childhood education into a commercial enterprise.
