Almost 70 percent of children in Bangladesh who complete primary education are unable to read, write or count properly, according to an internal report by the department of primary education (DPE). Sixty-nine percent of students who had completed five years of primary school were unable to read news headlines in Bangla newspapers properly, while 87 percent of pupils failed to do simple mathematical calculations, says the study, entitled National Assessment of Pupils of Grades Three and Five — 2006.Conducted by the Second Primary Education Development Programme (PEDP-II) — a donor-assisted initiative to ensure quality primary education for all children — the study reported that 72 percent of children were unable to write a short composition in Bangla, the mother tongue of over 95 percent of the population. The report also found students pitiably weak in English, which plays a key role in day-to-day life particularly in business, higher studies and…






