200 of over 75,000 institutions obtain registration
The government has made registration mandatory for nursery, preparatory or kindergarten schools, apparently bringing an end to the long-standing practice of not following any rules while establishing or running these institutions.
From now on, anyone seeking to establish a nursery or kindergarten school has to follow some regulations. The existing schools will also have to get registered with the registration authorities.
The primary and mass education ministry has finalised the “Non-government Primary (Bangla and English medium) School Registration Rules, 2011” after obtaining approval of the law ministry and would publish it soon through a gazette notification, insiders say.
Although the ministry has no exact idea how many kindergarten, nursery and preparatory schools exist in the country, Bangladesh Kindergarten Association says the number is over 63,500 as per a survey of 2009.
The association leaders however say the number might exceed 75,000 now. Of these, only around 200 such schools have registration as the government after 1991 did not provide fresh registration, they add.
“Finally, we get a document by which the government can oversee these schools which are mushrooming in the country,” said a top official of the ministry.
The official added every kindergarten school or nursery will have to follow the rules or face action.
According to the new rules, one will have to apply for primary permission to launch one such school.
Application fee for primary permission ranges between Tk 2,000 and Tk 5,000 depending on the location. The fee for the schools located in metropolitan cities or divisional headquarters is Tk 5,000. The fee will be Tk 3,000 for district headquarters and Tk 2,000 for upazila headquarters and rural areas.
After getting the primary permission, which would expire after one year, every private school will have to apply for temporary registration for three years.
Like the primary permission, the schools will have to pay a certain amount for temporary registration ranging from Tk 3,000 to Tk 6,000.
The rules say on expiry of the temporary registration, the schools will have to apply for final registration which would last for five years. The fee for the final registration ranges between Tk 6,000 and Tk 12,000.
The final registration would have to be renewed every five years.
As per the new rules, the schools in the metropolitan areas must have eight decimals of land. The institutions in the municipality areas will have to have 12 decimals, while schools of other areas have to own 30 decimals of land.
Besides, the schools must have at least one six-room building on 3,000 square feet of the land. If any school does not have any land or building of their own, it can rent land or building but has to submit documents to that end.
Every school will have to maintain an eight-member managing committee with its headmaster serving as the member secretary.
The three-year committee will appoint teachers and employees of the schools, fix their salaries and allowances, and also set tuition fees. The tuition fee would be fixed considering the standard of education and infrastructural facilities.
The schools cannot take any money against admission or in the name of re-admission.
The rules also say every institution in the metropolises must have a reserve fund of Tk 100,000. The fund for schools of district HQ has been set at Tk 75,000, for upazila HQ Tk 50,000 and for union level Tk 25,000.
Every school must incorporate books approved by the National Curriculum and Textbook Board into the list of textbooks. The schools can also follow syllabus approved internationally.
According to the new rules, every school must take part in the national programmes or days like the Independence Day, Victory Day or National Mourning Day.
The managing committee of every institution should get the accounts audited by any audit firm and submit the report to the registration authorities.
-With The Daily Star input
