Students to admit from I-IX by lottery

Education Minister Dipu Moni said that Students will be admitted to class I-IX at all government and private schools across the country through lottery system due to coronavirus pandemic.

“Area based quotas in Dhaka have also been increased by 50 per cent from 40 per cent. The students in the capital will be get an opportunity of choosing five educational institutions through cluster-level lottery,” the Minister informed these at a virtual press briefing on Wednesday.

She said, “The decision of lottery system has been taken to avert health risk. This time, fate will be given priority rather than qualification.

Students of Class I were get admitted through lottery while the students of classII-VIII through written test in other years. Students of Classes VI and IX were enrolled on the basis of their Primary School Certificate (PSC) and Junior School Certificate (JSC) exam results respectively.

But this year, it will not be possible as there was no JSC examination held. Dipu Moni said it will not be possible to hold the SSC and HSC examination in time in 2021 as the coronavirus pandemic continues to ravage Bangladesh.

Students will be tested on the basis of a curtailed syllabus which they can complete through three months of classes, she said.

“We have prepared a short syllabus for next year’s SSC and HSC candidates which can completed in three months.We want to have them attend classes for three months. As such, the SSC and HSC exams will be delayed by a month or two,” the Minister added.

For several years, the SSC exams started on February 1 and the HSC tests on April 1. If these dates coincide with public holidays, the tests usually begin on the following day.