Live Correspondent: Country’s 21 public universities do not have the ideal ratio between teachers and students necessary for imparting quality higher education. Educationists said the perfect teacher-student ratio at a higher educational institution should be 1:20 for ensuring quality education for the learners but the ratio is not satisfactory at many universities.

“Apart from the teacher-student ratio problem, around 80 to 100 students are at each class at our universities which also should be reduced to a standard level to ensure quality education,” he said

Mentioning that teachers are going abroad on leave after appointment but many of them do not return, he said the teaching profession should be made lucrative to meet the teachers’ crisis.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) should take effective measures to reduce the teacher-student ratio at the universities, he said. The academician also said, “Our universities are fully funded by the government but the universities should increase its own income like the foreign universities to increase their facilities.”

On average, the TSR is 1:19 at the public universities. The TSR is not ideal at 21 public universities as the ratio was over 1:22 at the institutions. But the UGC is not happy as the teacher-student ratio at many public universities is not satisfactory which is frustrating as it has given a sorry state of education at these institutions.

The teacher-student ratio (TSR) was 1:90 at Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, 1:90 at Sylhet Agricultural University, 1:90 at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, 1:90 at Sheikh Hasina University, 1:70 at Jashore University of Science and Technology, 1:70 at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Digital University, 1:60 at Bangamata Sheikh Fojilatunnesa Mujib Science and Technology University,

1:44 at Begum Rokeya University, 1:43 at University of Barisal, 1:40 at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science and Technology University, 1:33 at Rajshahi University, 1:38 at Islamic University, 1:53 at Sheikh Mujib Medical University, 1:37 at Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University, 1:29 at Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, 1:50 at Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology, 1:24 at Jagannath University, 1:24 at Comilla University, 1:29 at Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam, 1:25 at Pabna Science and Technology University, 1:32 Rangamati Science and Technology University.

Even the teacher-student ratio is not ideal at some renowned and old universities. There are only 1,150 teachers against 38,291 students at Rajshahi University, 399 teachers against 15,057 students at Islamic University, 188 teachers against 8,393 students at Begum Rokeya University, 261 teachers against 3,959 students at Jashore University of Science and Technology and 312 teachers against 11,547 students at Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University.

Experts said the country’s universities are lagging behind in terms of teacher-student ratio due to unplanned opening of departments, delay in recruitment of teachers and crisis of senior teachers at the highest seat of education.

UGC member Prof Muhammad Alamgir said the commission is giving approval of creation of post of teachers at the universities as per the organogram but it has been delayed for sometime due to lack of necessary initiatives by the university administrations.

Apart from this, the teachers’ recruitment was deliberately delayed due to internal problems at many university authorities which is increasing the teachers crisis, he said

He said, “However, some universities do not have enough teachers to fill senior positions such as professors and associate professors. This is also a big reason for lagging behind in teacher-student ratio.”

“Not only the teacher-student ratio, the maximum number of students per class or shift needs to be determined to ensure quality higher education,” said Prof Alamgir.

Dhaka, 18 january (campuslive24.com)//AIT