THE education system, conventionally regarded as the foundational pillar of the nation, now stands fragile and neglected. Consequently, the teachers, architects of this system, have been relegated to a class characterised by deprivation and lack of rights. In stark opposition to the legitimate, distressed pleas of this profession, the state has manifested a leviathan character, taking a stand that is not merely one of indifference but actively repressive. This dichotomy constitutes the most significant and tragic socio-political reality of contemporary Bangladesh.
Since its inception, national education has been subjected to a sequence of policy experiments. Although numerous education commissions have been instituted and various policies worked out over time, none has succeeded in fortifying the foundational structure of education. This systemic failure is attributable to multiple, overlapping causes.
Firstly, pervasive bureaucratic complexity has fundamentally undermined the education apparatus, transforming it into an immobilised entity. The dominance of superfluous regulations and administrative 鈥榬ed tape鈥� frequently overshadows and frustrates efforts aimed at the modernisation of education or the critical improvement in standards of teachers.
Secondly, chronic political interference has propelled the education sector towards a state of collapse. Practices such as institutional partisanship, nepotism and the pervasive inclination to instrumentalise education as a mere political tool have successfully deterred capable and meritorious individuals from taking up teaching as a profession. Political influence has diffused like a 鈥榤alignant sore鈥� across almost all domains, ranging from the selection of institutional governing boards to the process of teacher recruitment, thereby dragging the qualitative standards of education down. This entropy is exacerbated by the opportunistic role of sycophantic individuals whose self-serving agendas inflict long-term damage on the educational framework.
The teaching community is the principal victims of this pervasive systemic neglect. Their salary structure shows a complete disconnect from the economic reality. The meagre compensation received renders it virtually impossible for teachers to secure the minimum basic necessities for a family 鈥� adequate housing, food, health care and children鈥檚 education. This unbearable economic distress contributes significantly to their mental breakdown. When instructors are compelled to enter the classroom hungry and psychologically burdened, their capacity for a complete focus on knowledge dissemination is severely compromised. This condition transcends a personal occupational difficulty. It constitutes a national crisis as perpetually dissatisfied teachers inevitably generate a similarly discontented future generation. The repeated delay in the payment of salary and the necessity to appeal for a negligible festival allowance consistently degrade teachers鈥� social standing.
When this accumulation of extreme neglect and professional indignity surpasses tolerable limits, teachers are forced to engage in public protests. Yet, in response to such rational and humane demands, the state chooses to show its leviathan form. Teachers are met with police brutality, tear-gas shells and water cannons. This pattern of response is tragically evocative of the archaic, corrupt and bureaucratic colonial governance system, a regime fundamentally sustained by repression and suppression and characterised by the systematic trampling of citizens鈥� rights.
The 2024 mass uprising has only intensified the collective aspiration for a new paradigm. A fundamental overhaul of the education system is a cardinal demand. An equitable, modern and scientifically-oriented education system is envisioned to cultivate globally competent citizens. However, this aspiration has failed to materialise post uprising. The demand for substantive educational reform has been conspicuously ignored. Political parties have maintained a surprising silence about this fundamental issue, effectively failing to prioritise the development of the education sector. The state has demonstrated an inability to relinquish its long-standing leviathan character. Consequently, the nation appears to be deliberately deviating from the philosophical tenets of the uprising. The ultimate responsibility for this trajectory rests squarely on the undemocratic conduct of the state.
A pronounced class stratification within the education sector significantly exacerbates the weakness of the teacher movement. Hundreds of institutions are effectively managed by military or semi-military entities, autonomous state agencies or missionary organisations. Prominent institutions offer teachers鈥� salary and other benefits higher than those given to non-government teacehrs on the monthly pay order scheme. As a consequence, the privileged educators often withhold solidarity from the broader teacher movements. Such institutions operate as 鈥榠solated islands,鈥� maintaining their elitist status by isolating themselves from the crisis impacting the general education system. This internal division strategically benefits the state, by fragmenting the collective strength of the teaching body, thereby diminishing its power for collective bargaining. The formation of a united and successful movement remains unattainable until this intrinsic structural inequity within the education system is addressed.
Furthermore, the leadership deficit within the professional teaching community is critically deep. Leaders of various teacher organisations frequently show ambiguous and non-transparent behaviour. Some leaders are accused of engaging in covert collusion with the government to deliberately misdirect the movement or exploit the genuine emotional distress of grass-roots teachers for personal gains. The resultant erosion of trust in the leadership causes ordinary teachers to become disillusioned, leading to a loss of momentum for the movement. This pervasive atmosphere of disunity and perceived betrayal only serves to empower the state鈥檚 leviathan conduct.
A competing societal narrative often directs criticism towards teachers鈥� participation in coaching business or private tuition. However, this activity is correctly identified as not the primary cause of the problem but rather a symptom of a deep systemic malaise. When the state fails to adequately remunerate teachers for their intellectual contribution and labour, they are structurally compelled to pursue alternative income streams for subsistence. Provision of a respectable and sufficient salary, which ensures a dignified standard of living, would substantially mitigate teachers鈥� reliance on the coaching industry. The state鈥檚 tactic of deflecting responsibility for its own institutional failure onto the teachers merely avoids resolution and perpetually complicates the problem.
In summation, the establishment of a knowledge-based, developed nation is fundamentally incompatible with the existence of a starving, humiliated and frustrated teaching community. The state is, therefore, obliged to abandon its leviathan character and treat education as its supreme priority. This necessary action is not a matter of discretionary charity but a non-negotiable obligation of the state. Failures to guarantee the professional, social status and financial security of teachers will inevitably produce a generation that is intellectually barren, ethically compromised and incapable of critical inquiry, which will prove suicidal for the nation. The state that permits the architects of its future generations to starve is, metaphorically, strangling its own future. To realise the aspirations, a genuine transformation within the education system is indispensable, which should begin with the unconditional establishment of teachers鈥� rights and dignity.
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Mohammad Jashim Uddin ([email protected]) is an associate professor of English in Northern University Bangladesh.
