A recent review by the Ministry of Education reports the identification of critical issues with the National Curriculum 2022 and that it could not be implemented in the current format since it is unfeasible. "Depending on the inputs received from field-level experiences, stakeholders, and thorough research, several fundamental problems have been pointed out which need to be addressed straight away," said the ministry. The major problems identified were:

• Inadequate Preparation of Teachers: The extent of unpreparedness on the part of teachers to deliver this new curriculum is a big challenge that has been felt strongly in deterring the successful implementation of this curriculum.
• Lack of Clarity in Curriculum Content: Lack of clear instruction on the content of the curriculum has resulted in miscommunication and discrepancy in teaching approaches.
• Severe Shortfall in Institutional Capacity: Schools and infrastructure at educational institutions do not support the new curriculum in any way.
• Negative Perceptions About Assessment Methods Predominant: There is a lot of criticism found on the proposed assessment methods under the new curriculum that indicate their effectiveness and fairness.

The findings indicate that without the resolution of these core issues, there cannot be any effective implementation of the National Curriculum 2022. Major revisions by the government will help overcome such challenges and bring in a more viable approach toward educational reform.

A notification signed by Deputy Secretary Mst. Rahima Akhter on Sunday said field experiences and feedback from stakeholders marked big gaps in the curriculum and made its implementation unfeasible.

Potential Rollback to the Previous Curriculum

On August 18, Education Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud hinted at a possible revision to the educational curriculum of the past. He criticized the present education system introduced by the Awami League government as "not feasible."

This curriculum is not workable. We are looking at how we can revert to the old education system," the advisor said, guaranteeing that the process of bringing in changes will be made so that it causes minimum disruption to students' studies.

He further elaborated on the need to start the curriculum reform along with the modern education policy. "When time allows, we will immediately start the process to review the curriculum," he said.

The Awami League government adopted this curriculum reform in 2012, aiming at modernizing the educational structure by developing creativity and introducing information technology at the National Education Policy of 2010. This modified curriculum started its implementation in phases from 2023, aiming to gradually deviate from memorization-based curricula towards reducing traditional testing.

Instructions for Schools

In response to high levels of concern emanating from the National Curriculum 2022, the government has issued urgent instructions on gaps in teacher preparation, unclear content, and insufficient institutional capacity.

The revised guidelines give a road map for the gradual transition back to the National Curriculum 2012:

• Textbook Updates: The textbooks for 4th and 5th grades will be revised to maintain coherence with the currently developed material for pre-primary and grades 1 to 3, including modifications of the teaching methodology and continuous assessment procedures.
• Grades 6-9: Textbooks for these classes will remain in use until the year 2024. From then on, revised editions shall be issued in the year 2025. By the end of 2024, students will be evaluated with more recent methods of continuous assessment.
• Abolition of Incomplete Assessments: All incomplete subject-based assessments are hereby discontinued. Annual examinations for grade 6 to 9 will be conducted in December 2024 in view of a new assessment framework, the details of which will be shared with the schools very shortly.
• Transition to Grade 10 in 2025: The students who will get promotion to class 10 in the year 2025 shall get SSC and equivalent examination-2026 on the textbooks developed from the revised curriculum, National Curriculum-2012. New books will be on Science, Humanities, and Business Studies, and the curricula will be shrunk to complete within the academic year.

Looking Ahead

We will wrap up with an overall revision to the curriculum in 2025 with various participants including educators, curriculum specialists, and community representatives. The revised curriculum comes into operation in the year 2026.

The new directives are thus approved by the relevant authorities, with immediate effect, hence marking the final say in solving the issues pinpointed in the National Curriculum 2022 and paving the way to a steady and efficient educational system thereafter.