A Comparative Study on Sino-Bangla Education System. Compare Chinese education system with Bangladeshi education system.

1. Subject : Cross-Culture Business Communication
Title : A Comparative Study on Sino-Bangla Education System.
Name : Mohammad Tawhidur Rahman
Date : January 11, 2016

2. Mohammad Tawhidur Rahman P # 2
Abstract:
The Chinese educational system is often criticized by the western observers saying
it cultivates students of “high scores and low abilities”. The Bangladesh educational
system is similar to English, so, it may be interesting to compare the education of China
and Bangladesh. Though there are different types of programs, but here I just focus on
basic educational programs and try to compare.
Key Words:
Chinese education, Bangladeshi education, Sino-Bangla education, Education system,
Education in China and Bangladesh.
Introduction:
The Chinese education system took
its current shape between 1977 and 1980.
The total nominal duration of primary
and general secondary education was set
at 12 years. Undergraduate bachelor’s
programs were established with a
nominal length of 4 years, as well as
nominal 3-year postgraduate master’s
programs. The system for adult education
was also significantly expanded.
When the People’s Republic of China
was declared in 1949, all private
education institutions were either closed
or converted into state-run institutions.
The Chinese education system has a very
centralized structure and is supervised by
the Ministry of Education. The Ministry
creates the policy, which is then
implemented at provincial level by the
provincial educational authorities.
The official language of education is
Mandarin, which is taught to all Students
at school. The academic year runs from
September until June and consists of two
20-week semesters.
Educational stages in China
Typical
Age
Levels Education Grade/ Class Compulsory
18–22 Tertiary
University or College
(Bachelor, Masters, PhD.)
Varies No
15–17 Secondary
High school
(senior middle school)/
Vocational school
Grades 10–12 No
12–14 Secondary Junior middle school Grades 7–9 Yes
6–11 Primary Primary school Grades 1–6 Yes
The education system in Bangladesh
encompasses both formal and non-formal
education. Both types are available in a
religious variant. The Ministry of
Education (MoE) and the Ministry of
Primary and Mass Education (MoPME)
share responsibility for the entire
education system, with the MoE
responsible for all education after
primary education. This includes
religious education (taught at Madrasahs),
technical and secondary vocational
education. The MoE prepares legislation
and regulations, drafts policies and
carries out supervision of educational
institutions. The MoPME is responsible
for primary education and non-formal
education. University Grants Commission

3. Mohammad Tawhidur Rahman P # 3
plays an advisory, supervisory and
regulatory role in respect of higher
education in Bangladesh.
Following the country’s
independence, many schools in
Bangladesh were brought under state
control. The Directorate of Secondary and
Higher Education (DSHE) is responsible
for the administration of secondary
schools (state schools and private
schools), teacher training programs for
secondary education and curriculum
development for secondary education.
The Bangladesh Technical Education
Board (BTEB) is responsible for the
development of technical and
professional education.
To develop higher education at
Degree colleges, the National University
formed an umbrella organization for all
colleges offering general education
programs at bachelor’s and master’s level.
It is basically an affiliating institution
which administrates examinations and
awards diplomas on behalf of its affiliated
institutions.
The country’s official language is
Bengali and the second language is
English. Medium of instruction is English
at both public and private universities.
In secondary and higher education at
public universities, the academic year
runs from January to December. At
private universities students are enrolled
in academic years of 2 to 3 semesters.
Educational stages in Bangladesh
Typical
Age
Levels Education
Grade/
Class
Compulsory
18–25 Tertiary
University or College
(Bachelor/ Fazil, Masters/ Kamil,
PhD.)
Varies No
16–17 Secondary
Higher secondary/ Alim/
Vocational/ Diploma
Grades
11-12
No
14–15 Secondary
Secondary education/ Dakhil/
Vocational
Grades
9–10
No
11–13 Secondary Junior secondary education/ Dakhil Grades 6–8 No
6–10 Primary Primary education/ Ebtedayee Grades 1–5 Yes
Primary and Secondary Education:
China:
Primary education lasts 6 years and
is intended for children aged 6-12.
Subsequently, Students move on to the
3-year junior middle school, which marks
the end of compulsory education.
After completing an entrance
examination, Students can choose
between the 3-year senior middle school
or a 3 or 4-year vocational program at a
vocational senior middle school. Students
must obtain a total of 144 credits in order
to complete the program. A distinction is
now drawn between compulsory and
elective subjects. One hundred points can
be obtained for each subject (sometimes
less for electives, this differs between
provinces). The points score is then
converted into a letter according to a
slightly modified assessment system
made up of five letters:
Grade Points Description
A 90-100 Excellent
B 80-89 Good
C 70-79 Satisfactory
D 60-69 Pass

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F 0-59 Fail
At the end of the vocational programs,
Students are awarded the vocational
senior middle school graduation
certificate.
The name of the final examination is
‘general ability test’. The examination is
conducted twice per year, and excellent
Students can sit the exam from the
second year of senior middle school
onwards. The highest score obtained in
any subject is the one that counts. The
results for electives are only valid for the
same year, as opposed to the results of
compulsory subjects, which are valid for
3 years.
The year is made up of 41 weeks of
study (including one week of social work
experience) and eleven weeks of holiday.
Practical examinations are taken for
science subjects, technology subjects, and
arts subjects. In most provinces, students
can choose from the following foreign
languages: English, Japanese, Russian,
Spanish, German, and French. The subject
‘research-based learning activities’
encourages students to analyze and solve
problems independently and to develop
study skills.
Bangladesh:
Primary education lasts 5 years
(grades 1-5) and is intended for children
aged 6-11 years. Two variants are
available: general variant and religious
variant (taught at madrasahs, called
Ebtedayee education). Compulsory
Primary education is free and all text
books are provided by the government.
Following primary education,
students may choose from three
programs of study: general, religious or
vocational secondary education.
Secondary education lasts 7 years (3+2+2)
and comprises three cycles: junior
secondary (grades 6-8), secondary
(grades 9 and 10) and higher secondary
education (grades 11 and 12).
Secondary education is concluded
with a public examination leading to the
Secondary School Certificate (SSC). This is
administrated by seven Boards of
Intermediate and Secondary Educations
(BISE). Vocational specializations are
offered within the secondary education
curriculum, and these lead to a vocational
SSC. Within the general curriculum,
Students can choose from the humanities,
commerce and science group.
Higher secondary education is
provided by intermediate colleges, degree
colleges or by intermediate sections of
degree colleges or master’s colleges, and
leads to the Higher Secondary Certificate
(HSC). Within the general curriculum,
students can choose from the humanities,
commerce and science group. Here again,
it is possible to choose vocational
subjects within the HSC curriculum and
obtain a vocational HSC or a HSC in
business management. With a vocational
HSC or a HSC in business management, it
is only possible to gain admission to
higher education in a relevant discipline
and if the institution wishes to admit the
student in question. To protect childhood
marriage and encourage girls to take
higher education, Bangladesh govt. gives
stipend and makes tuition fee free
education for girls in all state owned
schools and colleges.
30% of secondary school students
follow a program of Islamic education (at
Madrasahs). The secondary level of the
Madrasah comprises 5 years of secondary
education (grades 6-10, Dakhil education,
comparable to SSC) and 2 senior years of
secondary education (grades 11 and 12,
Alim education, comparable to HSC). The
Dakhil Certificate and the Alim Certificate

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are awarded by the Bangladesh Madrasah
Education Board (BMEB).
In secondary vocational education,
Certificate programs of 1 or 2 years
duration are offered from grade 9, as well
as Diploma programs which require an
SSC for admission. Diploma programs are
provided by Polytechnics and Technical
Schools & Colleges. The Diploma program
in Commerce lasts 2 years, while Diploma
programs in Nursing and in Engineering
last 4 years. With a Diploma in
Engineering, it is possible to obtain
exemption of up to 6 months of study
credits for a higher education study
program in a relevant discipline. The
Bangladesh Technical Education Board
(BTEB) administers the examinations and
also awards the certificates and diplomas.
Secondary and higher secondary
examinations results are published in
grade system made up of five letters:
Grade Points Description
A+ 80-100 1st division
A 70-79.99 1st division
A- 60-69.99 1st division
B 50-59.99 2nd division
C 40-49.99 2nd division
D 33-39.99 3rd division
F 0-32.99 Fail
Tertiary Education:
China:
Admission process- The national
entrance examination (gaokao) is
conducted once a year. Admission to
university depends primarily on
candidates’ results in this examination.
However, it is also possible for a select
group of students whose academic
performance is outstanding, to be granted
an exemption from the entrance
examination and be recommended
directly to the university of their choice.
Some private institutions are exempted
from the gaokao and accept all students
who can afford the tuition fees. To take
part in the entrance examination,
students must have a senior middle
school graduation certificate.
Institutions- Higher education is
offered at institutions that call themselves
‘university’, ‘college’ or ‘school’. These
include degree-awarding institutions
(including several hundred research
institutes), specialized institutions,
professional universities, military
institutions, medical schools and colleges
(both regular and military), and executive
training schools, which train staff for
state-run companies and ministries.
Currently there are about 292
recognized independent colleges as per
19/6/2013. These kind of educational
institutions cooperate with well known
universities, private organizations or
private investors and do not obtain any
governmental funding. Furthermore, the
tuition fees for the students are higher
than for students at regular higher
education institutions. Admission to these
independent colleges is through the
national entrance examination for higher
education, similar to regular higher
education institutions.
Of the approximately 1000 private
Chinese higher education institutions,
388 are currently recognized (as of
23/5/2011). These institutions are
allowed to award diplomas independently,
whereas students of non-recognized
private institutions must take part in the
national independent learning
examination at the end of their course in
order to obtain an officially recognized
state diploma. So far, 79 of these 388

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private institutions are authorized to
award their own bachelor’s degrees
recognized by the Chinese Ministry of
Education at the end of a 4-year program.
Higher education programs are divided
by the Chinese government into 12
program categories (so-called first level
programs): philosophy, economics, law,
pedagogy, humanities, history, natural
sciences, technology, agriculture, medical
sciences, military affairs, management.
Among these 12 categories there are
several specializations (second level
programs), which in turn have their own
subcategories.
University Education-
A bachelor’s degree is awarded at the
conclusion of a 4-year undergraduate
program at a higher education institution;
the nominal length of programs in
Medicine, traditional Chinese Medicine,
Architecture and some Engineering and
Music programs is 5 years.
A master’s degree takes 2 to 3 years
to complete, half of which is devoted to
coursework and the other half to writing
the final paper. Students who only
successfully pass the coursework section
receive a Certificate of Graduation, but no
certificate of degree conferment. Master’s
degrees can be awarded by either higher
education institutions or research
institutes.
Admission to a Doctorate program
requires a master’s degree, an entrance
examination and recommendations from
at least two professors or (senior)
lecturers in the field. Candidates without
a master’s degree may still gain
admission via an entrance examination.
Doctorate programs take 3 to 5 years to
complete, including 1 year containing
only coursework, as well as a doctoral
thesis.
Bangladesh:
Admission process- Admission to
university education is decided on the
basis of the Higher Secondary Certificate
(second division) or a certain grade point
average (GPA) (usually between 2.5 and
3.5), often in combination with a
university entrance examination. The
exact requirements may vary by
institution and by faculty. Currently, not
even ten per cent of the age cohorts are
admitted to higher education. However,
the increasing number of private
institutions is ensuring that more
students have gained admission to higher
education.
Institutions- Higher education is
offered by a total of around 1,970
education institutions, encompassing
public institutions, private institutions,
international universities as well as
specialized colleges. Examples of
specialized programs offered by these
colleges include medicine, dentistry, law,
teacher training programs, leather
technology and physical education. There
is also a large category of around 1,800
degree course offering colleges under the
National University.
In addition to general higher
education, a religious form of higher
education is also available (taught at Alia
Madrasahs), with a 2-year Fazil program
followed by a 2-year Kamil program. The
diplomas for these programs are awarded
by the Bangladesh Madrasah Education
Board.
There is also a category of technical/
technological education covering
agriculture, engineering, medicine,
textiles, leather technology and ICT.
While universities largely offer a
combination of higher professional study
programs and research-oriented
programs, the degree colleges (like

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medical colleges, textile colleges) almost
exclusively focus on higher programs with
a professional focus.
University Education-
The education system in Bangladesh
encompasses various bachelor's degree
programs with a nominal duration
varying from 3 to 5 years. The
universities mainly offer 4-year honor’s
programs, while the degree colleges, most
of which are affiliated with the National
University, concentrate on the 3-year Pass
Bachelor’s, although they may also offer
honor’s programs. Following the 3-year
Pass Bachelor, the master's degree
programs last 2 years; this contrasts with
the 1-year master’s degree program
following the 4-year honor’s Bachelor.
Universities offer 4 years honor’s
programs.
The study programs leading to the
Bachelor of Arts, Science, Engineering
and Agriculture last 4 years, while the
Bachelor in Medicine, Dentistry and
Architecture take 5 years. Admission to
2-year Bachelor of Law programs
requires a Pass Bachelor in relevant areas
other than law. A Bachelor degree is also
required for admission to the 1-year
Bachelor of Education. Teacher training
colleges offer 1-year Bachelor of
Education programs, while Physical
Education Colleges offer programs
leading to the Bachelor of Physical
Education.
Master of Arts or Science programs
usually last 1 year and requires around
32 credits, and is preceded by a 4-year
honor’s bachelor’s program. It is possible
to choose a program with or without a
final dissertation. In the technical
programs, there is a distinction between a
Master of Engineering (M.Eng.) based
primarily on coursework and a project
but the Master of Science Engineering
(M.Sc.Eng.), where the program is based
50% on coursework and 50% on the final
dissertation.
Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.)
programs take 2 years and are
research-oriented. They are usually based
on 1 year of coursework, followed by a
written and a viva examination at the end
of the year, as well as a final paper.
Admission requires a master's degree
(first or second class) in a relevant
discipline or a 4-year bachelor's degree in
a relevant discipline. If the bachelor's
degree was not taken in a relevant
discipline, a first class degree will be
required for admission to the master's
degree.
Doctor of Philosophy programs last 3
to 5 years and admission generally
requires a Master of Philosophy or a
Master of Science/Master of Engineering
degree with a GPA of at least 2.75. In
special circumstances, it may also be
possible for excellent students to be
recommended for admission to a PhD
program following completion of the
coursework of an M.Phil. program (with a
GPA of at least 3.0). The program
encompasses coursework and research,
followed by a research paper.
English Education:
China:
The emphasis of English education
only emerged after 1979 when the
Cultural Revolution ended, China adopted
the Open Door Policy, and the United
States and China established strong
diplomatic ties. An estimate of the
number of English speakers in China is

8. Mohammad Tawhidur Rahman P # 8
over 200 million and rising, with 50
million secondary schoolchildren now
studying the language.
In China, most schoolchildren are
taught their first English lesson at the age
of 10. Despite the early learning of
English, there is widespread criticism of
the teaching and learning of the language.
Schools in China are evaluated and
financed based on test results. This
causes teaching to be geared towards the
skills tested. Students focus on
rote-memorization (written and oral
repetition) as the main learning strategy.
These methods, which fit very well with
the Chinese way of learning, have been
criticized as fundamentally flawed by
Western educationalists and
linguists. Furthermore, newly learned
words are seldom put into use. This arises
because everyone in China communicates
through Mandarin and English is
perceived to be of little use in the country.
This is further reinforced through the
national Band 4 examination where 80%
of the test was the writing component,
20% was devoted to listening, and
speaking was excluded entirely.
According to a national survey, only half
of the teachers consider that vocabulary
should be learned through conversation
or communication. A far smaller
percentage support activities such as role
playing or vocabulary games.
Bangladesh:
A vast number of schools in
Bangladesh are English Medium. These
are mainly private schools where all the
courses are taught in English except one
Bengali Language subject at ordinary
level (O Level). English medium schools in
Bangladesh follow the General Certificate
of Education (GCE) syllabus where
students are prepared for taking their
Ordinary Level (O Level) and Advanced
Level (A Level) examinations. The General
Certificate of Education system is one of
the most internationally recognized
qualifications, based from the United
Kingdom. The Ordinary and Advanced
Level examinations are English equivalent
to the Secondary School Certificate (SSC)
and Higher Secondary School
Certificate (HSC) examinations
respectively. Most students sit for these
exams from the registered schools in
Bangladesh who follow the GCE syllabus.
Those who do not attend a school that
follows the GCE syllabus may also sit for
their Ordinary and Advanced Level
examinations from British Council. These
examinations are conducted under the
supervision of British Council in
Bangladesh. The GCE examination
conducted by the British Council takes
place twice a year. Currently there are
two boards operating from Bangladesh
for Ordinary and Advanced Level
Examinations, which are Edexcel and
University of Cambridge International
Examinations.
Conclusion:
China education is the largest
education system in the world. On June
2015, there were 9.42 million students
taking the National Higher Education
Entrance Examination in China.
Investment in education accounts for
about 4% of total GDP in China. Today,
The Ministry of Education estimates that
99.7% of the population area of the
country has achieved universal nine years
basic education.
International students have enrolled

9. Mohammad Tawhidur Rahman P # 9
in over 775 higher education institutes in
China. China has a long history of
providing education to international
students studying in high schools and
universities in China. Over the past few
years, the number of international
students who study abroad in China has
significantly increased every year.
The higher education sector has
growth as well. China is seeking to
improve the quality of education through
a major effort at curriculum reform. China
has increased the proportion o its
college-age population in higher
education to over 20 percent now from
1.4 percent in 1978.
China has a consistent teacher
development system. Teaching has
historically been and remains today a
highly respected profession in China.
Teachers have strong preparation in their
subject matter and prospective teachers
spend a great deal of time observing the
classrooms of experienced teachers, often
in schools attached to their universities.
Once teachers are employed in school,
there is a system of induction and
continuous professional development in
which groups of teachers work together
with master teacher on lesson plans and
improvement.
Current government projects to
promote the education of children in
Bangladesh include compulsory primary
education for all, free education for girls
up to grade 10, stipends for female
students, a nationwide integrated
education system and a
food-for-education literacy movement. A
large section of the country’s national
budget is set aside to help put these
programs into action and to promote
education and make it more accessible.
Recent years have seen these efforts pay
off and the Bangladesh education system
is strides ahead of what it was only a few
years ago.
The educational system of
Bangladesh faces several problems. In the
past, Bangladesh education was primarily
a British modeled upper class affair with
all courses given in English and very little
being done for the common people. The
Bangladesh education board has taken
steps to leave such practices in the past
and is looking forward to education as a
way to provide a poverty-stricken nation
with a brighter future. Bangladesh has
one of the lowest literacy rates in South
Asia. One study found a 15.5% primary
school teacher absence rate.
The low performance in primary
education is also matter of concern.
School drop-out rates and grade
repetition rates are high. Poor school
attendance and low contact time in school
are factors contributing to low level of
learning achievement. Further, the system
lacks a sound Human Resource
Development and deployment system and
this has demoralized the primary
education sector personnel, including
teachers, and contributes to poor
performance. Poverty is a big threat to
primary education.
In Bangladesh, the population is very
high. The number of seats available in
colleges is less than the number of
students who want to enroll, and the
number of seats available in universities
is also less than the number of students
who passed higher secondary level and
want to join in a university. Besides, the
cost of education is increasing day by day;
as a result many students are unable to
afford it.

10. References:
1. Bangladesh Bureau of Educational
Information and Statistics,
2. Ministry of Education, Bangladesh,
3. Ministry of Primary and Mass
Education, Bangladesh,
4. Education board, Bangladesh,
5. en.wikipedia.org
6. www.chinaeducenter.com
7. www.ebeijing.gov.cn
8. www.classbase.com
9. www.unicef.org