Education Minister Dr A N M Ehsanul Haque Milon on Tuesday said the government has a proposal to appoint an office assistant in every government primary school, as the absence of such support staff currently burdens teachers with administrative work.
He said the proposal would be implemented subject to approval of PEDP-5 (the fifth Primary Education Development Programme).
The minister was responding to a starred written question from Prof Nazrul Islam, lawmaker from Rajshahi-5, during the question-answer session in the Jatiya Sangsad.
He also said the government plans to make religious education, fine arts and music practice compulsory in all primary schools across the country to aid students' mental, moral and creative development.
Responding to a question from reserved-seat MP Rokeya Begum, the minister said textbooks would include age- and class-appropriate content on the July mass uprising, the killings carried out by the then Awami League government in July-August, and various aspects of Sheikh Hasina government's "fascist" rule.
This would cover the causes and course of the uprising, the killings, the sacrifices of martyrs, the role of women, and its historical significance.
He added that the Class IX-X textbook "History of Bangladesh and World Civilisation" would include chapters on enforced disappearances, killings, money laundering, destruction of the electoral system, the Pilkhana tragedy, killing of journalists and interference in the media during the Awami League regime.
Students will get to study these topics from the 2027 academic year, he said.
Responding to Md Shawkatul Islam, MP from Moulvibazar-2, the minister said mid-day meals would be introduced in all madrashas across the country between fiscal 2026-31 under the education ministry's SEDP programme which also covers ebtedayee madrashas.
Replying to Abdul Muntakim, MP from Nilphamari-4, the minister said there are 8,229 MPO-listed madrashas in Bangladesh, comprising 5,768 dakhil, 1,284 alim, 993 fazil and 184 kamil madrashas.
Answering Rafiqul Islam Khan, MP from Sirajganj-4, the minister said there are currently 1,873 registered private primary schools in the country, and there is no immediate plan to nationalise them.
Replying to Obaidullah Salafi, MP from Nilphamari-3, the minister said work is under way to bring all kindergarten schools under online registration for admission processing. As of July 2026, 1,783 kindergartens have been brought under registration.