Chronic Absenteeism Rises in Rajshahi Schools as Private Tutoring Culture Undermines Classroom Attendance
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A deepening crisis of student absenteeism is paralyzing secondary schools across Rajshahi, as parents increasingly prioritize private coaching centers over mandatory classroom instruction. Data from city schools reveals a stark trend: at top-tier institutions, such as Shiroil Government High School and Government P.N. Girls’ High School, 10th-grade classrooms are frequently seeing attendance levels plummet to fewer than 10 percent of enrolled students.
Teachers and administrators point to the unchecked proliferation of private coaching centers as the primary catalyst for this decline. According to school officials, coaching instructors actively encourage parents to keep children home, arguing that traditional schooling is a waste of time that leads to exhaustion, whereas coaching offers concentrated study hours. This narrative has taken hold to the extent that even top-performing students, who should be classroom leaders, are reporting to school for only a handful of days per academic year.
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The repercussions extend beyond grades. Educators warn that students are being deprived of the socialization, etiquette, and interpersonal skills fostered in a school environment. Instead, students are increasingly prone to isolation, lacking both respect for their teachers and proper conduct at home. Headmasters report that their efforts to enforce attendance are often met with apathy from parents and, in some cases, political pressure when schools attempt to restrict the participation of students with poor attendance records in final examinations.
Efforts by local authorities to regulate the coaching industry have largely faltered. Despite the formation of oversight committees—including an education protection committee that previously mandated the closure of coaching centers during school hours and imposed caps on class sizes—these directives have been ignored. A newly formed committee, led by the Additional Divisional Commissioner, is now tasked with attempting to bring the sector under control, though officials have acknowledged that a complete shutdown of these centers remains unlikely.
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Behind the statistics lie a variety of justifications offered by parents, ranging from health concerns and exam preparation to the simple convenience of avoiding school commutes. Some school administrators also point to lifestyle factors, noting that students often stay awake late into the night using mobile phones, rendering them unable to wake up in time for class. This cycle of inconsistency leaves students unable to follow the curriculum, further discouraging them from attending.
The Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education in the Rajshahi region has acknowledged the severity of the situation. While officials are planning further consultations, a consensus has emerged among educators: until coaching centers are strictly prohibited from operating during school hours, the decline in student engagement and the erosion of the formal education system will remain difficult to reverse.
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