Coaching culture in Bangladesh

For most Bangladeshi high school students, the final school bell of the day is just the beginning. Often, their real lessons take place in the cramped classrooms of coaching centres, where hours of classes decide whether they fail, barely pass, or excel. This coaching culture has become almost a rite of passage. The classes are viewed as essential, without which a student cannot get into a prestigious university. While there are a number of advantages of this external education, they do not compensate for the much higher cost and drawbacks, which range from increased financial burden to stress-induced burnout.

Coaching classes for admission tests have always coexisted with schools for university entrance exams. In recent years, however, there seems to have been a surge in the number of coaching centres catering to high school students. What was once designed to complement school learning has now evolved into a parallel system of its own, often overshadowing the role of schools entirely. Many students continue attending school only in name, while the bulk of their academic preparation takes place in coaching centres scattered across the city.

Are students flocking to coaching classes because they are cheap? Not in the slightest. This has become a crushing financial burden for middle-class families, forcing parents to weigh the "return on investment" of each coaching class against the backdrop of already high school tuition fees.

If anything, this points to the failure of the education system in providing sufficient, high-quality lessons which force students to seek external classes. As a result, schools no longer provide the competitive academic environment they once did. Instead, the real competition has shifted into the halls of coaching centres, where the best tutors and institutes attract ambitious students from all over the city. And, given the much higher monetary compensation, why should the best teachers not leave school for these centres?

An even greater problem than money is the heavy toll on students' health and well-being. A typical day for many involves attending school in the morning, rushing to multiple coaching classes through the afternoon and evening, and returning home late at night with little energy left for rest, self-study, or reflection. This taxing schedule often leads to exhaustion and academic burnout.

The rapid growth of the coaching industry highlights another uncomfortable truth: coaching centres are commercial ventures first and educational institutions second. Many operate with profit as the primary motive, prioritising enrolment numbers over student growth. In this model, learners are treated as consumers, and knowledge is packaged and sold as a commodity. This commercialisation risks eroding the very spirit of education, turning it into a transaction rather than a transformative process.

Nevertheless, coaching centres do provide some benefits. Students navigating multiple classes and schedules often develop greater discipline and independence. The environment in these centres can also be highly competitive, pushing students to strive harder than they might in their schools. It is up to the students to arrange their routine, and extra help after school may improve their grades.

In the end, the rise of coaching culture reflects both a failure of the mainstream education system and the resilience of students and parents trying to make the best of an imperfect situation. The challenge for policymakers is to restore faith in schools by investing in teacher training, modern curricula, and classroom engagement. That way, we can ensure that a coaching centre serves as a supplement to those who need it, not a requirement only some can afford.

The author is an A level student from Sir John Wilson School.