Govt plans exam fees for primary schools 

The government has decided to introduce examination fees in public primary schools from now on, with Primary and Mass Education Secretary Md Sakhawat Hossain directing that fees be collected at fixed rates according to class to meet operational costs.

He said the existing system of providing only limited “slips” or allocations to headmasters has made it difficult to organise examinations in many schools, forcing teachers in some cases to cover costs from their own pockets. “Many times, teachers have to spend money from their pockets,” he said, adding that the new arrangement would allow costs to be covered “within the prescribed limit” without personal expenditure by teachers.

He made the remarks while speaking as the chief guest at a conference held at the national office of the Bangladesh Girl Guides Association on Saturday, organised in collaboration with officials involved in the expansion of the Girl Guides Yellow Bird programme and primary education.

Under the new directive, examination fees have been fixed at Tk 30 for Class III, Tk 40 for Class IV and Tk 50 for Class V students. “This is not an injustice, because it is not realistic to conduct examinations by spending personal money from teachers,” the secretary said.

He added that although the current allocations under the ‘slip system’ remain limited, the government is working on enhancing this funding. He further said this allocation has been increased for the future and it is expected that schools will receive comparatively more money in the next fiscal year.