Admission tests begin at Ctg govt schools today

Anxiety grips hundreds of parents and guardians as well as the students here as the admission tests at the secondary level at nine government high schools begins today to enrol around 4,000 students in five different classes from Class V to IX.
Around 83 percent students obtaining first division in primary education terminal examinations in the port city of Chittagong will not get scope for studying in any government high school due to lack of adequate seats.
The admission tests would be held in two separate schedules with nine schools in two groups, said the sources in the office of the additional deputy commissioner (education).
A student will be able to take part in the admission tests in two schools of different groups as the admission tests would be held on different days, they said.
Group-A comprises four schools, including Chittagong Collegiate School, Dr Khastagir Govt Girls' High School, Nasirabad Govt Girls' High School and Chittagong Govt Boys' High School.
Admission tests of class V and class VI under Group-A will be held today and on December 29 respectively while the admission tests of class VII, class VIII and class IX will be held on December 27.
Five other schools -- Govt Muslim High School, Nasirabad Govt Boys' High School, Bakalia Govt Laboratory Boys' High School, Hazi Md Mohsin Govt High School and Chittagong Govt City Girls' High School -- are under Group-B.
The admission tests of class VI and class V will be held and on December 27 respectively while the tests of class VII, VIII and IX will be held on December 29.
These nine schools can enrol only 693 new students at class VI while a total of 15,503 students of the city's different schools obtained first division in this year's terminal exams.
Around 1,800 first division obtainers are the students of these nine government schools who do not need to take part in the admission tests as the schools have already accommodated them.
Sources said around 7,500 admission forms have been submitted for class VI in the government schools while others are not applying for the tests.
Hasmat Jahan, headmistress of Dr Khastagir Govt Girls' High School, said some privately run schools are now the only option for the remaining students.
A few quality private schools in the city, including Ispahani Public School and College, Bangladesh Women Association (BAWA) Girls' High School, Ankur Society School, St Placid's Boys' High School, St Scholastica Girls' High School, Municipal Model High School, Silver Bell's Girls' High School and others can accommodate around 1,000 students in class VI.
HM Fazlul Quader, headmaster of Municipal Model High School, said the crisis for quality high schools is severe here as there was no initiative taken for establishing government high schools in the previous years.