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A total of 642 of Chandpur’s 1,156 government primary schools have been operating without regular headteachers for years, forcing assistant teachers to take on additional administrative responsibilities alongside teaching.
Officials said the shortage is putting extra pressure on acting headteachers and affecting both school administration and classroom teaching.
Matlab Uttar has the highest shortage, with 117 of its 180 government primary schools lacking headteachers. The upazila also has no permanent education officer and three of five assistant education officer posts are vacant.
In Matlab Dakshin, 40 of 113 government primary schools are also without headteachers.
Teachers and parents said assistant teachers acting as headteachers have to handle administrative work, official paperwork and coordination with parents, leaving less time for classroom teaching.
Abdus Sattar, acting headteacher of Char Kalia Government Primary School, said the school has been without a regular headteacher for six years.
“Administrative duties often keep me occupied, making it difficult to conduct classes regularly,” he said.
Officials attributed the prolonged vacancy partly to legal complications over the recruitment and promotion process. Under existing rules, 65% of headteacher posts can be filled through the promotion of assistant teachers.
The legal complications have now been resolved, officials said, paving the way for recruitment.
Chandpur District Primary Education Officer (acting) Muhammad Mosaddeq Hossain said a gradation list of eligible teachers was being prepared following ministry instructions.
“We hope to complete the process of filling the vacant headteacher posts across the district within the next three months,” he said.