Satellite School
Satellite School a government project to give rudimentary education given in private houses to the children of the depressed people around the country. These were meant for children aged 6-10 years who live in areas where there are no schools and are therefore, deprived of an opportunity to receive formal education. Many outlying areas of Bangladesh still suffer from scarcity of institutions of primary education due to natural and social obstacles. With the aim of removing this lack, a programme of setting up 200 satellite schools in the 1990-95 period was undertaken within the purview of general education programme. Those schools were run exclusively by women teachers and nearly 60% of the students were girls.
Instructions were given in those schools up to the second grade. With increase in the number of students, the third grade was introduced in eight schools. Although initially, the schools started in lounges of dwelling house at the earnest desire of local inhabitants, many such schools later got their own houses built with financial help from the government. Established in this way within the purview of general education, the 200 satellite schools, along with creating opportunity of education for child learners, gained considerable success in reducing the rate of dropping out.
Consequently, the grand project of establishing 4,000 satellite schools was duly accomplished. At first the time frame of this project was from July 1996 to December 2000 and the fund allocated was Tk 318.617 million. The full amount of money came from Bangladesh government's own sources. Towards the end of 2000, the project's duration was extended to December 2002 and its total budget was revised at Tk 500 million.
The three goals of satellite schools project are: to create opportunity of timely primary education for 6-10 years old children, who have no school to go in their own areas or who live in outlying and backward areas that lack communication due to natural obstacles; to motivate village girls in taking primary education side by side by with boys (this is to be done through local people's involvement and by creating a general awareness in them); and to reduce pressure of admission into lower grades (1st and 2nd grades) in regular schools (this means when number of students per class of a regular school exceeds 100, the surplus students would get chance for admission into the nearby satellite schools).
With the aim of smooth implementation of the project, arrangement was made to set up 4,000 satellite schools in phases. In the first year, the first grade was introduced and one teacher appointed. In second year, a second teacher would be appointed along with the introduction of the second grade. Qualified teachers with at least second division SSC are selected through a local teacher appointing committee. Women candidates living within an area of 2.5 sq km around the school ground are given preference in selection of teachers. But in hilly regions, in beel and haor areas, and in chars (inhabited sandbars), where women candidates are not available, men are taken into consideration. According to other regulations of satellite schools, teachers teach in the schools for 3 hours every day. They also carry out various other responsibilities such as organising regular mother assemblies and courtyard meetings.
A satellite school has an intake of 30 to 40 students for a session. Along with free supply of books, the satellite school students receive other facilities such as educational tools (slate, pencil, chalk, duster, paper, pen, chalkboard etc.) and furniture (mats, stools, tables), as well as the advantage of food for education. The works seriously considered in the project include renting a house for the school, constructing a brick-built house with a tube-well and a toilet within the shortest time, and taking steps to motivate local people about the project and getting the school built up by them.
Unlike conventional primary schools, satellite schools do not have arrangement for benches, chairs and tables for use by students and teachers. Moreover, to make the teaching easier by maintaining the environment of the learner's own home, mats are supplied for use by students, and low stools and tables for teachers. But considering the qualities of easy use and durability, synthetic mats is supplied for students in place of bamboo mats. To facilitate the children's learning, every satellite schools are supplied with books, slates, pencils, chalk sticks, dusters and two chalkboards for the two classes.
Teachers of satellite schools receive a monthly honorarium (taka five hundred in 2001). To receive training is one of the conditions of service for teachers appointed in satellite schools. During the project period, each teacher is given training two times in subject-based curriculum and school management. Each satellite school receives a fixed amount of money to buy register books, a national flag, signboards, one bell etc.
A project director of the Primary Education Directorate is in charge of the overall responsibility of proper implementation of the project's activities. At the field level, the responsibility of implementation lies on the upazila education officers and assistant upazila education officers. Following the Satellite Schools Foundation Rules, they implement all orders and directives of the centre through the Upazila Education Committee, Teacher Selection Committee, and School Managing Committee.
The district deputy commissioner or the upazila nirbahi officer nominates a commissioner of the ward concerned or one of the members of the Upazila Council as the president of the school's managing committee. The first voluntary teacher of the school acts as the member-secretary. The assistant upazila education officer nominates the headmaster of a regular primary school in the neighbouring area and one man and one woman from among the parents' representatives as members of the managing committee. In addition, a local patron of education and the owner of the schoolhouse are included as members of the managing committee. [Shawal Khan]
