Bangladesh: Pupil-teacher ratio, upper secondary

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2018, Bangladesh's pupil-teacher ratio, upper secondary fell 2.52 on 2017 (from 31.18 to 28.67).

Across the 16 yearly changes before that (1999 to 2017), the average change was +0.16 and a typical year strayed about 2.24 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 3.09 in 2013 and the biggest yearly fall was 4.62 in 2004. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2009 to 2018 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.46 a year. A straight line explains 34% of the movement over 8 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2018, Bangladesh had the 4th highest value of the 33 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Bangladesh in the 2018 ranking

• India — 1st of 33: 33.14
• Pakistan — 2nd of 33: 28.99
• Eritrea — 4th of 33: 27.64
• El Salvador — 5th of 33: 27.21
• Timor-Leste — 6th of 33: 26.03

What this measures

Upper secondary school pupil-teacher ratio is the average number of pupils per teacher in upper secondary school.

Limitations: The comparability of pupil-teacher ratios across countries is affected by the definition of teachers and by differences in class size by grade and in the number of hours taught, as well as the different practices countries employ such as part-time teachers, school shifts, and multi-grade classes. Moreover, the underlying enrollment levels are subject to a variety of reporting errors.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 19 values

Pupil-teacher ratio, upper secondary in nearby economies

• Bhutan — 7.86 (2018)
• India — 33.14 (2018)
• Nepal — 24.86 (2019)

More education data for Bangladesh

• Primary school starting age (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, duration (years) — 5 (2025)
• Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 11 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 7 (2025)
• School enrollment, tertiary (% gross) — 23.73% (2024)
• School enrollment, tertiary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 0.77 (2024)
• School enrollment, tertiary, female (% gross) — 20.79% (2024)
• School enrollment, tertiary, male (% gross) — 26.95% (2024)
• Secondary education, pupils — 15.07 million (2024)
• School enrollment, secondary (% gross)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Bangladesh's pupil-teacher ratio, upper secondary?

28.67 in 2018, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1998?

It is down 4.44% from 30 in 1998 (0.23% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 33.24 in 2013 and the lowest 19.18 in 2005.

How does Bangladesh rank?

4th highest of 33 economies with data for 2018.

Is the latest change in pupil-teacher ratio, upper secondary unusual for Bangladesh?

In 2018, Bangladesh's pupil-teacher ratio, upper secondary fell 2.52 on 2017 (from 31.18 to 28.67). Across the 16 yearly changes before that (1999 to 2017), the average change was +0.16 and a typical year strayed about 2.24 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.SEC.ENRL.UP.TC.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://uis.unesco.org/bdds, publisher: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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