Abstract
Bangladesh's development paradigm would change visibly once the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are implemented by 2030. Quality tertiary education can act as a catalyst for the country's economic and social development, enabling it to realize its full potential. By 2030, the entire national system will have undergone gradual modification to accommodate the “Development Junction.” Therefore, the main goal of this research is to identify the institutional and procedural barriers to ensuring quality tertiary education to fulfil the Sustainable Development Goals. Multiple primary data gathering techniques have been used in this study's mixed (qualitative and quantitative) approach. Again, in this study, both thematic and descriptive analyses were used. Finally, based on the findings, several recommendations have been put together for policy formation to ensure quality tertiary education in order to meet the Sustainable Development Goals.
TopIntroduction
Inequality still exists despite outstanding economic growth and a significant decline in poverty over the past 20 years (World Bank, 2018). Quality education (UNESCO, 2004; Billah, 2017; Budiharso & Tarman, 2020) is regarded as one of the most powerful and successful methods, among others, for achieving sustainable development (Islam, Uddin, Nandy, & Hosen, 2019) to address myriad difficulties and reducing inequalities. It is generally accepted that the development of a country is more heavily influenced by highly educated individuals than by the mere number of educated individuals. The Sustainable Development Goals 4 (Owens, 2017) and quality education (Billah, 2017) go hand in hand, ensuring that all learners get the information and abilities necessary to advance sustainable development (UN, 2015). In order to produce trained people resources who will immediately contribute to improved and higher-quality output and ultimately Bangladesh's sustainable growth, it is crucial to guarantee quality higher education. However, the nation is behind in this area. This study has explored the issues against these depressing backdrops, concentrating on institutional deficiencies at the tertiary-level education sector.
Today, a nation like Bangladesh is thought to need both an education and a quality education to develop. As a result, from the elementary level to the higher level, quality in the education sector counts at every step. Furthermore, the development of the economy and society is significantly influenced by higher education (Islam, Uddin, Nandy, & Hosen, 2019). But the tertiary level of education has emerged as one of the key topics of discussion for its constantly declining quality (Hossain, 2017). Academics, researchers in education, and other interested parties all acknowledge that Bangladesh's higher education has become worse over the past 20 years (Aminuzzaman, 2011, Hossain, 2017), and the trend is still in place. As a result, one of the difficult problems that have emerged is how to meet the development crossroads (Karim & Fair, 2007) and achieve SDGs by 2030 (Bhattacharya, Rezbana, & Khatun, 2018).
Moreover, questions now arise about whether governance matters for quality education. Is Bangladesh’s tertiary education of excellent quality hindered by any institutional issues? This study investigates the response to these queries. Even though there are numerous indicators for decreasing the standard of education (Ehsan, 2007; Nagoba & Mantri, 2015; Akter, 2017; Islam et al., 2017), little research has been done specifically on institutional gaps (Chowdhury, Hossain, & Rahman, 2013; J. Hossain, 2017; Cavallone, Manna, & Palumbo, 2020; Grudowski & Szczepańska, 2021). In order to improve the quality of tertiary education (Ullah, 2020) in the nation, it is essential and possible to conduct research to identify institutional shortcomings that have a negative impact.
Finding institutional deficiencies at the tertiary level in Bangladesh is the study’s overarching goal. However, it addresses some particular goals such as, to identify institutional weaknesses in producing skilled human resources through high-quality education; to determine the extent to which tertiary-level educational institutions are struggling to meet the development agenda; and to suggest policy options for enhancing institutional capacity at tertiary level education in the nation. To achieve its goals, the study posed the following research questions.
- 1.
Are there any institutional obstacles to providing Bangladeshi students with high-quality postsecondary education?
- 2.
Are tertiary level educational institutions properly coordinated and cooperating?
- 3.
In relation to SDG-4, what functions do financial and non-financial resources play in ensuring the quality of tertiary education?
Key Terms in this Chapter
Tertiary Education: The degree of education that comes after secondary school is known as tertiary education (Ullah, 2020), sometimes known as third-level, third-stage, or post-secondary education. Tertiary education in Bangladesh comprises two categories of institutions: degree-awarding universities and colleges affiliated with the National University (Ehsan, 2021).
Sustainable Development Goals (SDG): The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which has 17 SDGs, was adopted by the General Assembly in September 2015 (United Nations, 2015). The new Agenda emphasizes a holistic approach to attaining sustainable development for all, building on the idea of “leaving no one behind”. Environmental, economic, and social sustainability are the three pillars of the sustainable development concept (Beattie, 2021).
Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB): A civil society organization devoted to battling corruption, which has its headquarters in Berlin.
Higher Education Institution (HEI): Universities, colleges, and professional schools that offer courses in disciplines like law, theology, medicine, business, music, and art are all considered higher education institutions.
Qualified Education: Quality education involves critical thinking, learning to work with others, and working independently, in a broad range of subjects.
University Grant Commission (UGC): The University Grants Commission (UGC), established in 1973, acts as a catalyst between the government and universities to regulate university affairs and it has the mandate to oversee academic decisions at the tertiary level in the country.
Development Junction: The ‘Development Junction’ means a point of the stage where the country is expected to achieve the major development agenda of the government by 2030. This term has been adopted by the current Awami League government in their election manifesto before the national election in 2018.