When will the staffing shortage in MPO institutions go away?

NTRCA chief says new law will ease recruitment through direct exams

With nearly 75,000 teaching positions vacant in Bangladesh, private educational institutions under the Monthly Pay Order, or MPO, scheme are in crisis as the majority of the students in the country are enrolled there.

In the last couple of years, the Non-Government Teachers’ Registration and Certification Authority, or NTRCA, took multiple recruitment drives to address the teacher shortage.

However, the efforts of the NTRCA fell short as only half of the advertised entry level (Assistant Teacher/Lecturer) posts were filled.

According to NTRCA officials, a shortfall in the number of qualified candidates in specific subjects and a lack of desired candidates for some of the positions have added to the crisis.

Madrasas in particular are seeing dwindling pass rates for some of the subjects, which is exacerbating the staffing crisis.

Now, the NTRCA plans to issue another massive recruitment circular early next year, with the aim to fill nearly 80,000 to 100,000 vacancies.

According to the NTRCA officials, more than 77,000 teaching positions were vacant in over 28,000 of the 31,826 educational institutions under the MPO scheme including schools, colleges, madrasas, and technical education until March 2024.

Meanwhile, the organisation is now conducting a broader data survey, which is expected to conclude on Nov 17, to assess the full scale of the shortages.

The NTRCA was established in 2005 to recruit ‘qualified and skilled’ teachers for the students of Bangladesh.

However, the organisation has been failing to meet the demands over the years, despite an increase in power.

In Feni’s Chhagalnaiya, at least six of the sixteen positions in the East Devpur High School are still vacant. Of them, four posts have been vacant since March 2021, one from October 2023, and the other from January 2024.

Speaking of the vacancies, Principal Delwar Hossain Patwari told bdnews24.com: “There vacancies for chemistry, physics, social science, information and communication technology, agriculture, physical education, and arts and crafts subjects.”

“Meanwhile, as the position of the assistant professor for social science has been empty since the beginning of this year, the students enrolled for the humanities department are having difficulty studying.”

In Chattogram’s Hathazari Upazila, there are at least seven teaching vacancies in the Burishchar Ziaul Ulum Kamil Madrasa. Of the vacant positions, six have been empty since 2020, while the other has been unfilled since May 2023.

Madrasa Principal SM Farid Uddin told bdnews24.com: “It is difficult to run the institution with so many posts vacant. But as the committee is financially solvent, we have hired part-time teachers to fill some gaps.”

WHAT’S THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS?

In order to obtain a teaching position in private schools and colleges in Bangladesh, a candidate must have the teacher registration examination certificate.

Once upon a time, local board members held sway over the appointment of teachers from the certificate holders.

But this led to accusations of ‘recruitment trade’ and other irregularities and complaints were raised against these councils led by local MPs or Upazila chairman.

To counter this, the education ministry reformed the teacher registration exams and recruitment rules on Oct 21, 2015. The reforms centralised the appointment process and transformed it to a merit-based system overseen by the NTRCA.

According to the new rules, a minimum of 40 percent marks in each stage of the preliminary, written and oral tests is required to obtain the registration certificate.

Currently, the validity of the registration certificate is three years. Per the rules, holders of the certificate can fill out their applications online by paying a fee of Tk 1,000 until the age of 35. A candidate can choose up to 40 educational institutions in their preferred subject in the application.

The candidate is then recommended for placement in one of the institutions based on the marks obtained in the registration test.

Once selected, the candidates join the educational institution with a recommendation letter.

THIS ISN’T A NEW CRISIS

In 2016, the NTRCA recommended the appointment of 13,667 people for the first time after the power of the board of directors of local educational institutions was limited.

Later, in 2019, 39,535 vacancies were advertised, but only 31,665 people were recommended.

In addition, the death and retirement of teachers also add to the number of vacancies.

In the beginning of 2021, as many as 54,000 teaching positions were vacant in Bangladesh.

The same year, nearly 35,127 candidates were recommended for the third stage of the recruitment process.

However, by the end of 2022, there were at least 68,000 vacant positions left to be filled in educational institutions across Bangladesh.

That year, 3,844 teachers were recommended through a special public notice, and 1,222 candidates were recommended for the post of technical trade instructors in schools and madrasas under the Secondary Education Sector Investment Programme, or SESIP, in 2019-2023.

In 2023, the authorities recommended to employ 27,846 candidates in the fourth phase.

In the beginning of 2024, the number of vacant teaching positions stood at 96,736.

Although the fifth notification was issued to recommend the appointment of teachers in these posts, the vacancies were still not filled due to the shortage of qualified candidates. During this phase, the NTRCA recommended the appointment of 22,021 candidates.

Earlier this year, the certificates of millions of candidates awaiting their fifth public notification were cancelled due to the three-year validity of the certificates ordered by the court.

Currently, as many as 77,000 teaching positions still remain vacant in these educational institutions across Bangladesh.

NEW RECRUITMENT DRIVE ON THE HORIZON

Since 2016, the NTRCA has facilitated the recruitment of over 135,392 teachers.

Meanwhile, the NTRCA officials are stating that there is a scarcity of qualified candidates for the advertised posts.

Recently, the 18th registration process cleared as many as 83,865 candidates for oral examinations that began on Oct 27 to expand the candidate pool.

NTRCA Secretary AMM Rizwanul Huq told bdnews24.com: “It will take a few months for them to complete the viva….and not all candidates will pass.”

“Those who have passed the 18th teacher registration will get the opportunity to apply in the sixth public notification. We hope that after the appointment of teachers in the sixth public notice, the excess number of vacancies will decrease.”

According to Rizwanul, the sixth notification will be issued after the final results are published at the end of the viva.

“If it happens before that, we will not be able to find eligible candidates. This public notification will be issued next year. However, it is difficult to say the potential month or date right now.”

When asked how many posts will get notifications, Rizwanul said: “We are in the process of collecting information about the vacancies right now. I will be able to say the exact number once the data is collected.”

According to Rizwanul, the notification will be issued after taking newly vacant positions into account.

Meanwhile, the data collection process for vacancies has already begun and educational institutions have been asked to provide information for the next three years by Nov 17.

WHY ARE POSITIONS NOT BEING FILLED?

Generally, the Education and Quality department of the NTRCA makes recommendations for the recruitment of vacant teaching positions.

NTRCA Director Kazi Kamrul Ahsan told bdnews24.com: “Many posts remained vacant in previous public notices due to the lack of candidates for arts and crafts, physics, ICT, ICT lecturer for colleges, assistant moulavi for madrasas, and Ibtedaye moulavi.”

According to Mostaq Ahmed, the assistant director of the same department of the NTRCA, “In the fourth public notice, over 5,000 teaching positions for arts and crafts were vacant. But only 11 applications were received. More than 8,000 assistant Moulavi positions are vacant but candidates were recommended for 4,000 posts only.”

According to Mostaq, there is a lack of candidates in the registration examinations for the post of assistant teachers in arts and crafts, and ICT.

Currently, the recruitment of 40 percent female teachers in the metropolitan and district level private educational institutions and 20 percent in other areas are mandatory.

However, there is an opportunity to relax this provision in remote hilly areas, haor regions, enclaves and pastures.

According to Director Ahsan, the women’s quota has yet to be filled as female candidates do not want to teach in educational institutions in rural areas even if they get recruitment recommendations.

“They tend to join the institution located in the district of their husband’s workplace.”

“However, if a male teacher is appointed without fulfilling the female quota, he cannot be taken under the MPO scheme. Therefore, these positions cannot be filled and they remain vacant.”

According to Ahsan, several candidates applying for specific Madrasa subjects do not get the mandatory 40 percent marks required to pass the preliminary exam.

“Again, the application for teacher registrations in subjects like ICT or biology are less.”

CRISIS 'WON'T END’ ANYTIME SOON

Meanwhile, a top NTRCA official has admitted that even after completing the recruitment of nearly 100,000 vacant posts, there will still be a staffing shortage for 35,000 teaching positions.

He told bdnews24.com: “There are discrepancies between the 18th teacher registration write test, the number of subject-wise candidates and the posts which were vacant in the fifth public notification.”

“Even if all the candidates who cleared the written test for those posts pass the viva and get t e recommendation, over 35,000 posts will still remain vacant. There are more vacancies than the number of candidates who passed the written exam. Furthermore, it’s not like all those who pass the written exam will pass the viva. Candidates will be registered only if they have proof of minimum eligibility.”

WHAT ARE THE CONCERNED PARTIES SAYING?

Habibullah Raju, the president of Bangladesh Teachers Forum, an association of NTRCA-recommended teachers, blames the NTRCA for the staffing shortage all over Bangladesh.

He told bdnews24.com: “The NTRCA can’t offer a job to a candidate even after they clear the three stages. On the other hand, there are so many positions vacant in the educational institutions. It’s actually a lack of coordination.”

According to Raju, it takes years to complete all the steps for registration. As a result, many candidates move their focus to other professions.

He opines that if the recruitment process is made shorter and less complex, then the vacant positions will be filled sooner.

“Hence, the NTRCA can be converted to a commission.”

The new rules introduced by the education ministry at the end of 2015 directed the NTRCA to make recommendations for teacher recruitment every year.

Although it is not effective in practice, a circular issued on Jan 25 said that if necessary, the recruitment circular can be circulated every 3 months.

However, Rizwanul said that the initiative cannot be implemented due to the lack of qualified candidates.

NTRCA officials say plans are underway to scrap the teacher registration exam after a decade and a half of its introduction in 2005 and that the NTRCA is changing.

According to these officials, the government wants to rename the NTRCA as the Non-government Teachers’ Recruitment and Selection Authority.

For this reason, a new law is being adopted by cancelling the NTRCA Act. The draft of the new law has already been published.

Per the draft, according to the new law, those interested in getting appointed as teachers in non-government educational institutions will have to sit for the recruitment test. Candidates will be recommended for direct recruitment against vacancies on the basis of the examination results.

NTRCA Chairman Mohammad Mofizur Rahman believes that if the new law is passed, the staffing shortage will plummet.