The education of young children has also suffered during this period. The participation rate in distance education classes among secondary level students is 20.3 percent in lower secondary and 23.7 percent in higher secondary, but it was 13.1 percent in primary school children.
Meanwhile, Khulna and Dhaka participated the most in distance education with 23.4 percent and 23.1 percent respectively and the least in Mymensingh at 5.7 percent.
In this regard, UNICEF representative in Bangladesh Sheldon Yate said, “The impact of the epidemic on children is still the same across the country. End the digital divide to make the education system more resilient.”
Planning Minister MA Mannan said the survey will help understand the impact of prolonged school closures during the Covid-19 pandemic on children’s school attendance, absenteeism, dropouts and learning loss on other educational outcomes.
He felt that it would also help the government to take steps to improve the quality of education.