1,981 students enrolled in excess

Ideal School and College, Motijheel, a prominent school in the capital, has admitted 1,981 additional students to its different branches this year against the available seats, reveals a probe report.

While the admission advertisement declared 4,780 seats available, the authority admitted 6,585 students to different classes, said the report submitted to the education ministry last month.

The admission policy does not allow a school to enrol students more than the number of seats it mentions in the advertisement.

Based on allegations by some guardians and media reports, the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE) formed a two-member investigation committee on February 16.

The members are Osman Bhuiyan, deputy director of planning and development wing of DSHE, and Mohammad Tazib Uddin, finance and procurement wing of DSHE. The committee was asked to submit its report within three days, but it turned in the report eight months later.

The school has both Bangla and English versions in its main branch in Motijheel. The other branches are in Banasree and Mugda. A total of 20,239 students are currently studying in the institution, which has 608 teachers. The school enjoys government's monthly pay order facilities partially.

According to the probe report, a copy of which was obtained by The Daily Star, the school admitted the additional students following a January 6 resolution of the institution's governing body. The governing body made the decision considering availability of classrooms in the branches, it said.

However, DSHE officials said the school enrolled the additional students several weeks after completion of the admission process. The school has been enrolling additional students for the last several years despite criticism. In 2013, the school admitted around 1,500 additional students, they said.

They alleged that the students were admitted through “donations”.

Of this year's 1981 additional students, 439 and 227 students were admitted in Bangla and English versions to the main branch, the probe report said. Some 1,010 students got admitted to the main branch on the basis of merit against 908 available seats, it said.

A total of 563 additional students were admitted to Banasree's Bangla version while the number in English version of the same branch is 257. In Mugda branch, the number of additional students was 495, the report said.

It said the institution had experienced and dedicated teachers and the students had consistently been doing very well in all public examinations under their guidance.

"Therefore, the school authorities experience heavy pressure for admitting students, which puts the governing body in embarrassing situation," the report added.

Contacted, Shahan Ara Begum, principal of the institution, said she had got nothing to do with the admission.

The admission was completely done as per the decision of the governing body, but the ministry did not accept that, she said.

"What is the point of having a governing body when the ministry does not listen to their demand?" she said. "How will we run our institution amid this situation when we cannot raise tuition fees or admit students?"

The extra students were mainly admitted to class-I, II and III, the principal said.

Ziaul Kabir Dulu, president of Obhibhabok Oikya Forum, a national platform of guardians, demanded that the ministry take action against irregularities of the school.

He, however, said the probe committee did not deliberately touch many issues.

Despite repeated attempts, the committee members could not be reached for comments.