







































American International Journal of Business and Management Studies  

Vol. 2, No. 3; 2020 

ISSN 2641-4937     E-ISSN 2641-4953 

Published by American Center of Science and Education, USA 

 

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Impact of COVID on Online Teaching Platform: Study on IB 

Curriculum in Bangladesh 

 

Syeda Aliza Salik  

International baccalaureate PYP Teacher  

Abdul Kadir Molla International School  

Bangladesh 

E-mail: syedaaliza.salik@gmail.com  

 

Md Rezuan Chowdhury 

International baccalaureate PYP Teacher  

Abdul Kadir Molla International School  

Bangladesh 

E-mail: rez.akmis2020@gmail.com 

 

 

Abstract  

The sudden upsurge of Covid 19 pandemic has caused an immense effect in all the sectors throughout the world. 

Likewise, the education sector is no exception. Many countries around the world have decided to keep the 

educational institutions closed as an attempt to stop the pandemic from spreading. As a result of the outbreak of this 

pandemic the government of Bangladesh has declared a general holiday since March 23, 2020. In this scenario, most 

of the educational institutions have called off their on-campus activities and chose online platforms to continue their 

academic activities. Although the virtual classes initially began at only a few private institutions, the number started 

to rise gradually. There is an increase in the number of learners and institutions using the internet to continue the 

learning journey as the days are passing by. This paper aims to discuss the problems and prospects of online 

teaching in Bangladesh presenting a comparative picture between the mainstream education and International 

Baccalaureate curriculum applying during pandemic lockdown. This paper uses Abdul Kadir Molla International 

School to present a partial picture of the online teaching scenario in Bangladesh. The paper discusses some 

challenges such as unavailability of digital devices, unstable internet connection, lack of teachers training etc. Some 

queries, concerns and thoughts along with some recommendations are put before your discussion. 

 

Keywords: Challenges, Possibilities, Online Teaching Strategies, Comparison.  

1. Introduction 

With the unexpected flare up of COVID 19, the education sector of Bangladesh has been through a significant 

transition. To combat the unforeseen pandemic Bangladesh government declared a public holiday since March 18, 

2020 which brought in a closure in all the educational institutions resulting in thousands of students being away 

from school for an uncertain period. According to UNICEF, 1.6 billion children throughout the world are unable to 

attend school physically due to Covid 19, having a remarkable portion of Bangladeshi students. Many schools 

decided to go for online teaching which led an important changeover in the education system- lessons shifted into 

virtual classrooms from on campus classes and the learners, teachers and their parents also tried to cope up with the 

new alteration. In this paper we will try to discuss and present the current scenario of online teaching in Bangladesh, 

the challenges and prospects of online teaching in Bangladesh and we will also try to suggest some 

recommendations for an effective online teaching.  

 

2. Research Objectives 

 The major objectives of this study are as follows:  

▪ To identify the practices of online teaching in Bangladesh 

▪ To study the challenges and prospects of online teaching 

▪ To present a comparative study between IB curriculum and national curriculum 

▪ To recommend a solution for a better online teaching 

 

mailto:syedaaliza.salik@gmail.com
mailto:rez.akmis2020@gmail.com


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3. Research Methodology 

This paper is based on primary and secondary data. Primary data is obtained through teachers, students and parents 

from both IB and national curriculum schools. The sources of secondary data include different journals, articles, 

blogs, newspapers and different publications of websites. A quantitative method is used in this study which includes 

conducting surveys. We conducted a survey among teachers from various schools.   

 

4. Literature Review 

According to The Standard Business Portal (August 14,2020), Online education provides a healthy routine in a 

comfortable environment, but not everyone in Bangladesh can afford it. To help the students continue their 

education, educational institutions are trying their best to reach out to students through different mediums, including 

television, radio, and social media platforms like Facebook, Zoom, Google classroom, Google meet etc. Finance 

Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, in his budget speech, pointed out that 40 million students are not being able to 

continue regular academic curriculums across Bangladesh. A survey conducted by BioTED, a novel training and 

research initiative, revealed that 55 percent of students do not have proper internet connections.  In order to attend 

classes regularly, a student needs to spend at least 300 MB to 1 GB data per day. This being a costly procedure, 

many students are being deprived of learning opportunities.  

According to UCA news, Sumon Roy, a ninth grader of Lalon Shah school in Kushtia district has been 

trying hard to make up for a valuable time of education lost during the pandemic. He has been at home since school 

closed on March 17and his family has no TV, smart phone and internet. He says, “I could catch up a bit if I could 

attend the online classes, but it is not possible for me. Only God knows what will happen to us if its continues”.  

5. Data Analysis and Interpretation  

5.1 Online Teaching in Bangladesh 

With the declaration of public holiday by the government in mid-March educational institutions also called off their 

academic activities. Some schools decided to start online teaching for their learners. Though a remarkable number of 

schools are conducting online classes in the cities still it is not happening commonly in remote areas. Schools 

located in the city are able to offer online teaching to their learners but for the learners habituating in the villages or 

remote areas are still not able to be blessed with this facility.  Holy Cross Brother Ranjan Purification, headmaster of 

St. Mary’s Junior High School in Alikadam in hilly, forested Bandarban district, is anxious about the fate of his 364 

students. “There is no electricity in most houses among the hills, so TV or online classes mean nothing to the 

students” he says. A better picture is seen in the schools prevailing in the city areas. Being blessed with all the 

modern facilities such as the internet it is a bit easier for them to offer online classes to their learners and a bigger 

number of students are able to continue their study virtually with this facility.  

 

5.2 A comparative study of IB curriculum and national curriculum 

Though it is difficult to figure out the exact number of national curriculum schools offering online classes to their 

learners as more schools are using the online platforms such as Google classroom to teach, we would like to present 

a comparative picture between the schools of IB curriculum and national curriculum. A number of schools from the 

national curriculum have already started online teaching and everyday more schools are joining in. Sangsad TV, a 

government owned TV channel also telecasts recorded classes for primary learners. There are few groups such as 

Sylhet online school, Dhaka online school that have taken initiative to provide support to the learners of primary and 

secondary schools through Facebook live. These groups prefer Facebook as a platform to continue academic 

activities as this is the most used platform and is convenient for everyone which does not require a high ICT literacy. 

Learners are attending classes and participating classes through Facebook live. In comparison with the schools that 

are following national curriculum a better picture can be found in IB schools. There are seven IB schools in 

Bangladesh. The Aga Khan School, International School Dhaka, Pledge Harbor International School, Australian 

International School Dhaka, American International School Dhaka, Crans-Montana International School and Abdul 

Kadir Molla International School.  

All the seven schools are conducting online classes among all of them Abdul Kadir Molla International 

School being the first school in Bangladesh to start conducting online classes from 18th March 2020 right from the 

cancellation of on campus school. To have a close look at the online teaching scenario we have conducted a survey 

where 47 people from 34 schools participated including teachers, coordinators, principals, admins and other 

personalities related to schools gave answers to different questions such as how long they have been conducting 

online classes, what percentage of students attend, what curriculum are they following and what platform they are 

using to conduct online classes. The survey result shows that all the seven IB schools in Bangladesh are conducting 



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online classes. These schools are using various online platforms to offer online teaching such as MS Team, Zoom, 

Google Classroom, Hangout, Google Meet to conduct classes. The questions were as follows:  

▪ Are you a……Teacher/Coordinator/Principal/ Other?  

▪ Which institution are you working in? 

▪ Which curriculum does your institution follow? 

▪ Is your institution conducting online classes? 

▪ How long is your institution conducting online classes? 

▪ Rank your and the parents ‘gratification of online teaching.  

▪ What platform are you using for conducting online classes? 

▪ How many students are attending the online classes? 

▪  What device is the student using and what device are you using to conduct the 

classes? 

▪  How many periods do the students attend per day? 

▪  Does your institution arrange any in house workshops for online teaching? Did 

you personally attend any workshop on online teaching? 

▪  How do you report your students' progress to the parents? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 1: Number of participants and designation 

 

Figure 1. Number of participants and designation 

 

Figure 1 shows the number of participants presented in a bar graph. 38 teachers, 1 vice principal, 1 

principal, 3 coordinators, 1 advisor, 1 councilor and 1 administrator participating in the survey.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 2. Curriculum followed by survey participant schools 

Figure 1 
2.27%

2.27%

2.27%

31.82%

2.27%14%

2.27%

22.73%

2.27%

TERTIARY

OXFORD ESL CURRICULUM

NATIONAL CURRICULUM OF …

NATIONAL CURRICULUM

IPCIB

ED EXCEL 

CAMBRIDGE

BRITISH CURRICULUM  

Which curriculum does your institution follow?



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From figure 2 we see the curriculum followed by various schools that participated in the survey. 2.27% 

schools follow the British curriculum, 22.73% schools follow the Cambridge curriculum, Oxford ESL curriculum 

being followed by 2.27 schools, 31.82% schools follow national curriculum, 2.27% schools follow the Edexcel 

school and 14% of the schools follow IB curriculum.  

 

Figure 3. The online platforms used by the participant schools 

Figure 3 shows us the platforms used by schools to conduct online classes. Zoom, Google classroom and 

Meet is being used the most. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 4. Percentage schools conducting online classes 



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From figure 4 we see the percentage of all the participant schools conducting online classes. It was found 

all the 34 schools participated in the survey were conducting online classes.  

Figure 5. Percentage of students attending online classes among participant schools 

The percentage of students attending online classes is shown in figure 5. In 8 schools, 30-50% students are 

attending online classes. In another 8 schools the percentage is 50-70% and in 23 schools the percentage of student’s 

attendance is 70 -90%.  

 

 

 

 

                                                                                        

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 6. Parents gratification with children’s online classes 

Figure 6 shows parents’ gratification in bar graphs. We can see that all the 4 IB schools conducting online 

classes, 28.57% of the parents are satisfied with their children’s study, 21.42% of the teachers are satisfied with 

online teaching and in all these four schools 64.28% students are attending the online classes which indicates the 

number of 70-90% of the total students attending the classes.  

These schools are conducting their academic activities extensively. The orientation program at the 

beginning of the session is also happening virtually which is allowing the parents, teachers and the learners to meet 

and know each other without requiring any physical visit in the school. Along with conducting classes IB schools 

are also conducting assessments regularly. Schools are arranging summative and formative assessments virtually 

which is allowing to know the level of the learners. IB schools are celebrating PYP Exhibition virtually where 

learners demonstrate their learning through various activities. These schools are also inviting mentors from different 

countries to groom the learners. IB teachers from Bangladesh have also mentored PYP Exhibitions in other 



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countries. One of the teachers from Abdul Kadir Molla International School Mr. Rezuan Chowdhury has mentored a 

PYP Exhibition in Domuschola, a school in the Philippines. Apart from these, regular workshops for teachers are 

also being arranged. Abdul Kadir Molla International School arranges workshops for teachers twice every week - 

Wednesday and Thursday as per the on-campus school schedule where teachers from other countries are invited 

through zoom. Two of the teachers were invited by an association named “English Medium School Association of 

Bangladesh” and “UK-Bangladesh Education Trust” to share their online teaching practices. (Voluntary action taken 

by IB teachers to promote online teaching) Among all the IB schools Abdul Kadir Molla International School has 

been conducting full-fledged academic activities virtually and was honored to be an authorized IB school. The 

authorization process was completely virtual and Abdul Kadir Molla International School was the first virtually 

authorized IB school in Bangladesh. The IB schools are also celebrating different national and international events 

virtually. Abdul Kadir Molla International School celebrated World Principals’ Day virtually on 01.05.2020.  

 

5.3 The challenges of online teaching 

▪ Unavailability of internet in urban areas: The most important challenge for conducting online classes in 

Bangladesh is that the internet is still not accessible to a huge number of people living in the remote areas. 

The BD Bureau of Statistics Multiple Cluster Survey 2019 shows that only 37.6 percent of households in 

the country have access to the internet. It is also found that only 5.6 percent of households have a computer.  

▪ Interrupted power supply: Availability of electricity is another challenge. Many hilly and water side areas 

are still not having electricity. Some areas are having interrupted power supply because of load shedding. 

These are having impacts on flawless online classes.   

▪ Lack of ICT literacy: Online teaching requires ICT skills such as using the Google classroom app, using 

apps and platforms such as zoom, meet etc. In Bangladesh these platforms, for many of the learners and 

teachers also, is a new phenomenon. Teachers are not yet properly trained to conduct online classes.  

▪ Lack of trained teachers: Conducting online teaching requires ICT literacy. Our country is lacking tech-

savvy teachers. Many of the teachers do not have the expertise and are not comfortable in using apps such 

as Google classroom, hangout or meet.  

▪ Not enough support from the education ministry: There has been a little step taken by the education 

ministry of Bangladesh to promote and facilitate online teaching.  

5.4 Prospects of online teaching in Bangladesh 

Despite the various limitations there has been a noticeable progress in online teaching of Bangladesh. Learners and 

teachers are adjusting themselves to remote learning at home using the devices. Both learners and teachers are 

exploring the endless possibilities of online teaching through using the various platforms. Everyday new schools are 

starting to offer online classes, conducting assessments virtually. There was a rapid growth in the number of 

educational institutions coming ahead with virtual classes. UNICEF is also working with the government of 

Bangladesh to offer effective remote learning programs using TV, radio, mobile phone and internet platforms to 

reach the maximum number of students. The English Medium School Association of Bangladesh arranged a free 

webinar on online classes for teachers. 

 

6. Recommendations for effective online teaching 

▪ To make the online classes effective ICT literacy is a must do thing for teachers. Teachers should have 

expertise in the technological know-how of using online platforms. Schools should arrange training and 

workshops for teachers. Each school should offer basic ICT courses for students as well.   

▪ Government of Bangladesh should focus on providing internet connection in remote areas also. People 

living in the far- off areas should have internet access. ICT ministry should take steps to ensure internet 

facilities in those areas. 

▪ Attending online classes requires devices such as laptop, tab, mobile, desktop. These devices are expensive 

and still many people cannot afford these. The price of IT devices should be reasonable so that mass people 

can afford it.      

▪ Government has taken some initiatives to telecast recorded classes for primary students on a government 

owned TV channel. But more TV channels and radios should telecast recorded classes for the students of 

different grades.  

▪ Mass media can play the most important role in raising awareness of attending online classes. TV and radio 

channels should invite educators and facilitators to discuss, motivate and inspire the learners to attend 

online classes. Print and electronic media both have to work on this issue.  



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▪ Non-government organizations such as UNICEF can arrange training and workshops for teachers for the 

underdeveloped countries.  

▪  To provide more information to the student’s schools should have websites and blogs which should be 

updated on a regular basis.  

▪  UGC (University Grant Commission) of Bangladesh has conveyed the message to the education ministry 

and requested them to provide the students with free or low-cost internet facilities (The Daily Star, August 

11, 2020). Schools also should come up as an association and recommend the same sort of facilities to the 

government for the students to enhance their learning.  

▪  To make online teaching organized and systematic a well written policy should be made. Government of 

Bangladesh should work on a policy on online teaching.   

 

7. Limitations 

There are some limitations of this study. One of the limitations is time. The research had to be conducted within a 

short period of time. Accessibility of data was another limitation. Enough data on the impact of Covid on online 

teaching platforms was not available. The third limitation was the inability to move or travel because of the 

pandemic. The survey used in this research and other information had to be collected virtually. We could not visit 

the schools physically.  

 

8. Conclusion 

As it is said an online class can never be a substitute of a brick and mortar class, but still an online class has some 

opportunities as well. Despite the challenges online teaching has been practiced by a Bangladeshi YouTube channel 

“Ten Minutes School” which has been uploading recorded classes on you tube. This channel has also played an 

important role in familiarizing online teaching in Bangladesh. Taking them as an example other initiative should be 

taken to promote online teaching. Online teaching can be made interactive by providing students age appropriate 

contents rather than teaching only with the textbooks. The drawbacks and the challenges can be overcome, and 

online teaching can be made effective with a well written policy.  

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