Weight of school bags should not exceed limit of tolerance

Education is the backbone of a nation. However, the heavy bags carried by our young students are causing harm to that backbone. Many children are developing curved backs due to the weight of their bags. It appears as if they are carrying heavy burdens, not just books, on their shoulders as they go to school. In the words of Kabir Suman's song, "The school bag is too heavy, can we really carry it? Isn't this a form of punishment? It hurts, it hurts!" Indeed, it is very painful. Year after year, the authorities have overlooked this issue, putting young students in real danger, which is concerning for the country's education and health sectors.

Why have the bags of young students become so heavy? Second and third grade students have 6-7 books: Bangla, English, Math, Religion, as well as Drawing, General Knowledge, and Computer. In addition, they have separate notebooks for each subject. Carrying a water bottle and a lunch box makes the bag even heavier. Many parents may carry the bag for their child on the way to school, but once at school, the child has to carry the heavy bag like a stone by themselves.

From the sixth grade onwards, the number of books increases further, with 8-10 books. Before reaching adolescence, how physically strong can a boy or girl be? Do they have the strength to carry such heavy bags? In fact, carrying a heavy bag on their back is harder than carrying it on their head. Can a small child handle so many subjects in their mind?

In many schools, it has been observed that there are no computer labs, yet children have computer books. Is it possible to learn about computers by reading books without using a computer? What good is it for a child to memorize what a mouse, keyboard, CPU, and monitor are? When a child sits in front of a computer, they will naturally learn how to use it.

The same can be said for many other subjects. The policymakers of the education system are undoubtedly very wise individuals. However, those who have traveled abroad and visited foreign schools, who have a fair understanding of foreign education systems, have all said that they have not seen anything like this in schools in developed countries. Students in developed countries do not have the experience of carrying such heavy bags. So why are school bags for students in our country so heavy?

The quality of education is not improving in proportion to the heaviness of the bags. Despite studying English from the first grade and even after completing an honors or master's degree, most students are still not able to properly learn English. So, what is the benefit of carrying such heavy bags? It's just a matter of a bent backbone! Everyone involved in education, including the Education Minister, needs to quickly address this issue. You rather increase the quality of education reducing the weight of the bags.