Policies

SCHOOLS IN URBAN SLUMS

Context and Issue

In Bangladesh, primary school enrollment is approximately 17 million children, constituting over 90% of the country's primary school-aged population. However, despite high enrollment rates, only 65% of children reached the final year of primary school in 2009. By 2010, the total number of children who either dropped out or were never enrolled amounted to nearly 8 million. Government schools often struggle with poor educational quality and hidden costs, discouraging attendance. Urban slum-dwelling children in Bangladesh encounter additional obstacles to accessing and remaining in school due to low family incomes, inadequate infrastructure, and high population density. Many children in urban slums leave school to work as manual laborers to contribute to their family's income.

Solution

The Schools in Urban Slums project expands BRAC's existing education initiative by establishing 2,000 one-room schools in urban slums and adjacent areas. Its goal is to enroll an estimated 62,000 out-of-school children (OOSC) in and around major cities such as Dhaka, Sylhet, Chittagong, Rajshahi, Khulna, Barisal, Rangpur, Jessore, Mymensingh, Comilla, Gajipur, and Norsingdi. The project provides total funding for primary school education in all 2,000 schools over four years. Approximately 2,000 teachers are recruited and trained to work in these schools. Furthermore, more than 10,000 parent committee members are undergoing training in school and monitoring children's attendance to bolster teaching and learning outcomes in local schools.

Key Insights 

The project has delivered remarkable outcomes, reaching 98% of the intended out-of-school target population. It has successfully established all targeted slum schools (100%) while surpassing the overall performance indicator goals by 57%. Establishing these one-classroom schools within urban slums has provided a genuine second opportunity for children from marginalized communities to complete their primary education—an opportunity they would have otherwise been denied within the mainstream educational system. The out-of-school children enrolled in these slum schools are finishing their primary education and excelling in national examinations. In 2017, the pass rate for children graduating from these slum schools stood at an exceptional 97.78%, outperforming the national aggregate pass rate of 95.18% for the same year. This remarkable achievement underscores this initiative's transformative impact on these underprivileged children's lives.

Analysis

One of the critical factors to ensure in the case of slum schools is that safety considerations and the fact the schools are not overcrowded.