Buildings alone will not create excellence; teachers will
Bangladesh is planning a major expansion of public education by building 600 model schools and colleges across 300 parliamentary constituencies. Each constituency would have one boys’ and one girls’ institution, both following the cadet college model with residential facilities and admission from class six.
The Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE) has reportedly drafted the proposal at an estimated cost of Tk68,442 crore. It is an ambitious and politically attractive plan, offering visible infrastructure, a proven model and the promise of extending elite-style education to more students.
Its biggest risk, however, is that it could repeat a familiar pattern: impressive campuses but average learning outcomes. Buildings alone do not create excellent schools. Teacher quality will ultimately determine whether the initiative succeeds.
Cadet-college-style infrastructure is relatively easy to replicate. High-quality teaching is not. Without competitive pay, attractive career prospects and strong professional support, the model will be difficult to scale across 600 institutions.
Why the cadet model works
Cadet colleges have built a reputation for discipline, structured routines, residential supervision, co-curricular activities and consistently strong academic performance. They also benefit from substantial public investment.
According to a parliamentary reply, annual spending per cadet college student was about Tk5.34 lakh, based on the institutions’ budgets and enrolment at the time. That figure highlights a fundamental policy question.
If Bangladesh expects the proposed institutions to deliver outcomes comparable to cadet colleges, it must also be prepared to finance the recurring costs that underpin those outcomes. Dormitories and dining halls are only part of the equation. Sustained spending on teachers, residential supervision, training and incentives is equally important.
The proposal’s biggest challenge is not construction but teacher supply and quality.
Governments naturally begin large education projects with land acquisition, design and construction because those are the most visible milestones. Yet a school does not become a model institution because it has modern buildings. It becomes one when leadership promotes effective teaching, assessment continuously improves learning and teachers maintain high academic standards.
Scaling that model across 600 institutions will require a large pool of highly capable teachers.
The real shortage is talent
If the institutions admit students from class six through higher secondary level, they will need qualified teachers in Bangla, English, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, ICT, social sciences and business studies, alongside mentors and residential supervisors.
Bangladesh already faces intense competition for talented graduates. Banking, the corporate sector, development organisations and overseas opportunities often offer better pay and stronger career prospects than teaching. Establishing 600 new institutions would sharply increase demand for an already limited talent pool.
Quality teachers cannot simply be recruited. They must be attracted, developed and retained.
That requires remuneration that competes not only with other government jobs but also with private-sector opportunities available to high-performing graduates. Cadet colleges have traditionally offered structured benefits alongside government pay scales, including housing, medical facilities and other allowances.
The lesson is straightforward: attracting and retaining talented teachers requires more than a basic salary.
If the proposed institutions offer standard government pay while expecting cadet-college-level performance, two outcomes are likely. Positions—particularly in STEM subjects—may remain vacant, or they may be filled by teachers with widely differing levels of capability. Either outcome would create a network of impressive campuses without consistently high-quality teaching.
Pay must match expectations
If teacher quality is to become the foundation of the project, attractive compensation must extend beyond headline salaries.
Teachers in high-demand subjects such as mathematics, science and English should receive competitive pay with clear career progression. Residential or hardship allowances should be available for less desirable postings, while on-campus or subsidised housing is essential for institutions that rely on residential supervision.
Professional development should be treated as an investment rather than an occasional workshop. Mentoring, lesson study, subject-based professional communities and certification pathways all require dedicated funding and protected time.
Performance incentives also have a role, provided they reward classroom practice, student learning and mentoring rather than simply examination results. Equally important are reasonable staffing levels and manageable class sizes. Without them, even highly capable teachers will eventually burn out.
Without these elements, Bangladesh risks creating the appearance of a cadet college rather than the substance of one.
Discipline cannot replace teaching
One of the biggest governance risks is assuming that the visible features of cadet colleges can be replicated as easily as their educational outcomes.
Discipline, uniforms, routines, residential supervision and administrative control can all be introduced through rules. Good teaching cannot.
Effective pedagogy depends on teachers’ subject knowledge, lesson planning, assessment skills, classroom culture and professional commitment. These qualities take years to develop and require a profession that is respected, well supported and adequately rewarded.
If policymakers focus primarily on replicating the outward features of cadet colleges without making a comparable investment in teaching, the result could be orderly campuses but ordinary learning. Students may experience discipline without receiving the educational excellence the model is intended to deliver.
The questions that matter
The proposal, first reported by Prothom Alo, outlines an ambitious national programme backed by a substantial initial investment. The next stage of the debate should focus less on infrastructure and more on implementation.
How many teachers will each institution require across different subjects? Where will they come from? Will recruitment rely solely on universities and teacher training colleges, or will there be opportunities for lateral entry by experienced professionals?
Equally important is whether the proposed pay structure and benefits will be competitive enough to attract talented graduates who currently have more lucrative career options.
The government must also explain how teachers will be trained, evaluated and supported throughout their careers, and how the institutions will avoid becoming examination-focused coaching centres rather than genuine learning communities.
If these questions are addressed seriously and backed by sustained funding, the project could significantly improve access to high-quality education, particularly in rural and underserved areas.
If they are not, Bangladesh risks spending Tk68,442 crore on new campuses without materially improving learning outcomes.
The real investment
Bangladesh’s plan to establish 600 cadet-model institutions reflects welcome ambition and a determination to expand access to quality education.
But the cadet college model is defined less by its buildings than by the people who make those institutions work. Dormitories, laboratories and classrooms can be built within a few years. Developing, attracting and retaining outstanding teachers is a far longer-term challenge.
Ultimately, this initiative should be judged not by the number of buildings completed but by the quality of teaching delivered inside them.
If the project becomes another construction programme, it may leave behind impressive infrastructure with limited educational gains. If it becomes a teacher-quality programme supported by competitive pay, professional development and strong leadership, it could transform public secondary education for decades.
The author is an associate professor of business management and leadership, a former corporate executive, a retired major and an ex-cadet. Views expressed in the article are solely those of the author.
