Continuing Education in Bangladesh: The Lessons of Experience

Overview & Synopsis

Continuing education (CE) in Bangladesh is a mass education programme. The primary aim is to develop the skills of participants, providing them with opportunities to increase their income. Its targets are neo-literate people--both male and female--between the ages of 11 and 45. Neo-literate is a technical term used in mass education in Bangladesh indicating people who became literate by completing a basic literacy course. An important feature of CE in Bangladesh is that it directly relates mass, adult, and non-formal education to participants' livelihoods. Also, for participants, CE is not just about attending courses, but is a lifelong involvement for self and collective development. In this article, the author describes from his own experience the implementation of CE in Bangladesh. The author highlights the concept and methodology aspects in particular, which may be useful to mass educators in other countries. (Contains 1 table, 2 figures and 2 notes.)