School textbooks to get new content on history

School textbooks will be revised for the 2027 academic year, with new content on the Liberation War, post-independence political history and the July Uprising.

The National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) has taken the initiative as part of the government’s electoral pledge to present what it calls the accurate history of the Liberation War.

Students of Classes 3-10 will study new material on Ziaur Rahman, Khaleda Zia, the events of November 7, 1975, the 1990 mass uprising and the July 2024 uprising.

An NCTB document obtained by The Daily Star lists 14 additions or revisions to Bangla Literature, Bangladesh and Global Studies, and History of Bangladesh and World Civilisation textbooks.

NCTB Chairman Prof Mohammad Fakhrul Mawla said the 2027 changes mainly involve additions and revisions to existing books.

“There has not been much change. The major change, if there is to be one, will come with the 2028 curriculum,” he told The Daily Star.

On September 8, Education Minister ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon told parliament that the causes and course of the July uprising, killings during the movement, sacrifices of those killed, the role of women and the uprising’s historical significance would be included in age-appropriate form in the national curriculum.

He also said the Classes 9-10 history textbook would cover disappearances, killings, money laundering, the electoral system, the Pilkhana tragedy, killings of journalists and media interference during the previous Awami League government.

However, experts cautioned against allowing textbook accounts of history to change with governments, stressing that historical content should be based on evidence rather than political considerations.

CHANGES FOR 2027

A significant addition is what the document calls “Ziaur Rahman’s ‘We Revolt’ rebellion and declaration of independence”, which will be covered briefly in Classes 3-7 and in greater detail in Classes 8-10.

Biographies of Ziaur Rahman and Khaleda Zia will be added to the Class 5 Bangladesh and Global Studies textbook under “Our Memorable Leaders”, while Zia’s essay, “Memories of the War of Independence”, will be included in the Bangla textbook for Classes 9-10.

Other Liberation War-related additions include a brief text on the seven Bir Sreshthos for Class 6 and another on the “Liberation War Brigade Forces” for Class 8. Classes 9-10 will cover the organisational phase of the war, including the Teliapara Meeting on April 4, 1971.

Several texts on Bangladesh’s post-independence history will also be added.

Books for Class 6 and above will include progressively detailed accounts of the “Sipahi-Janata Revolution” of November 7, 1975, while “Khaleda Zia’s contribution to the 1990 mass uprising” will feature in books for Class 8 and Classes 9-10.

Texts on the 2024 uprising, including “The Story of Martyr Anas” and “July Mass Uprising Memorial Museum”, will be included in books for Class 4 and Classes 9-10.

REVISIONS THROUGH THE YEARS

Accounts of the Liberation War in school textbooks have repeatedly changed with governments.

After the Awami League came to power in 1996, new Liberation War material was added, including content on Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the four national leaders.

The BNP-led government revised the books after taking office in 2001, removing or reducing references to Sheikh Mujib and his March 7 speech while giving Ziaur Rahman greater prominence in accounts of the declaration of independence.

After the AL returned to power in 2009, an expert committee reviewed textbook accounts of the Liberation War. The revised books reinstated Sheikh Mujib’s biography and his role in the declaration of independence, while Zia’s name was removed.

After August 2024, the interim government discontinued the 2022 national curriculum and returned secondary education to the 2012 framework, changing accounts of the declaration of independence yet again.

The 2025 textbooks state that Zia declared independence on March 26, 1971, and made a second declaration on behalf of Sheikh Mujib the following day. Material on the July Uprising was also added during the interim government’s tenure, while content on Sheikh Mujib and his family was revised or removed.

2028 CURRICULUM

Prof Mawla said the NCTB’s Curriculum Development and Revision Core Committee would begin work on the 2028 curriculum this month.

“A curriculum cannot be changed in a day. It develops gradually,” he said.

Before that, four new books will be introduced in 2027, two each for Classes 4 and 6. Class 4 students will get books on sports and Bangladeshi culture, while Class 6 students will receive one on technical education and another titled “Learning with Happiness”.

Asked whether the additional books could increase students’ academic burden, Prof Mawla said they were designed not to, adding that the subjects would not be assessed through conventional grading.

A new text titled “Third Language” will also be added to the Class 6 Bangla textbook, while ICT textbooks will be updated with material on artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.

THE PRINTING RACE

The NCTB plans to print around 31 crore textbooks for roughly four crore students at pre-primary, secondary and equivalent levels for 2027.

Production and delivery of primary-level books are comparatively well advanced, but secondary-level books lag far behind.

According to the latest figures from NCTB Member (Textbook) Prof Mohammad Abu Naser, 84 percent of pre-primary books had been printed and delivered, compared with 64 percent for Class 1, 63 percent for Class 2, 51 percent for Class 3, 26 percent for Class 4 and 21 percent for Class 5.

By contrast, only around 13 percent of secondary-level books had been delivered.

The figure stood at 41 percent for the ibtedayi level, 18 percent for Class 6, 17 percent for Class 7 and just 2 percent for Class 8, while none for Classes 9-10 had yet been delivered.

The four new books for Classes 4 and 6 have yet to enter the printing process as regular work orders have not been issued, Prof Naser said.

He said primary books were expected to reach the field by October 15-20.

“There is no concern over the primary books,” he added.

For secondary books, the board is working to meet a November 30 deadline for delivery to every upazila across the country, he said.

‘HISTORY SHOULDN’T CHANGE WITH GOVTS’

Prof Siddiqur Rahman, a curriculum specialist and former director and retired professor of Dhaka University’s Institute of Education and Research, said textbook accounts of history should not change with the party in power.

“Today one party will come to power, tomorrow another, and they will arrange history in their own way. That cannot be history…. Whoever comes to power, we want the correct history presented to the new generation.”

He said individual contributions to the Liberation War and subsequent political events should be presented based on evidence, without diminishing or exaggerating anyone’s role.

“Distorting events people witnessed themselves would raise questions about the credibility of textbooks,” he added.

Prof Siddiqur said neutral, qualified experts should write historical content based on documented evidence and, where relevant, accounts from those who directly witnessed the events.

He also opposed using a government’s electoral pledge as the basis for determining historical content.

“The present generation does not belong to any one political party. They are citizens of Bangladesh who will take part in building the country in the future,” he said, warning that deliberately presenting falsehoods as truth would be harmful.

Prof Siddiqur called for permanent NCTB rules ensuring that textbook and curriculum preparation follows the same principles regardless of which party is in power.

Drawing on his experience as an NCTB consultant and curriculum committee head, he said writers should be selected based on their subject expertise, with safeguards against lobbying that could allow unsuitable people into the process.