Alongside the inclusion of several new topics, extensive revisions are being made to books such as Bangladesh and Global Studies and History of Bangladesh and World Civilisation at the secondary level.

Among the new additions are detailed descriptions of the sectors of the Liberation War, the events of 7 November 1975, and the role of former Prime Minister and BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia in the mass uprising of the 1990s. These topics will be presented at varying levels across different classes. Students in Classes Six to Eight will receive comparatively shorter descriptions, while the topics will be discussed in greater detail in Class Nine textbooks.

At the same time, the government is introducing new subjects to make education more enjoyable, culturally engaging, and skills-oriented. A new book titled Learning with Happiness will be introduced for Class Six students. In addition, a new textbook on sports and culture will be added for Class Four. Officials from the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) said the book will include concepts related to at least seven different sports.

Significant revisions are also being made to promote technical and vocational education.

According to NCTB officials, a social stigma surrounding technical education still exists in the country. To address this, the Work and Life-Oriented Education textbook for Class Six will be extensively revised to highlight the importance and potential of technical education, encouraging students to develop an interest in the field from an early age.

New additions are also being made to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) textbooks. Detailed discussions on artificial intelligence (AI) are being included in secondary-level ICT books, with greater emphasis on technology-driven practical skills, reports Prothom Alo.

Sources at the NCTB said students will receive these textbooks free of charge at the beginning of the new academic year in January. Work is currently underway to finalise the content, presentation style, and class-based structure of the books. Officials said the revisions are being aligned with the pledges outlined in the new government’s election manifesto.

Earlier, following the student-led mass uprising of 2024, the interim government moved away from the then-existing curriculum and began revising textbooks based on the 2012 curriculum framework. Later, poems, essays, and prose pieces related to the July mass uprising were added to Bangla and English textbooks for Classes Five to Nine-Ten in 2025. In the current year’s textbooks, content on the July uprising and the mass uprising of the 1990s has also been incorporated into Bangladesh and Global Studies books for Classes Six through Nine-Ten.

This year’s textbook revision process is being carried out in two phases. The first phase involves minor linguistic and wording corrections, while the second phase focuses on major revisions to content and activity-based learning materials.

Professor S M Hafizur Rahman of the Institute of Education and Research at the University of Dhaka, who is involved in the revision process, said the initiative aims to improve both the quality of content and classroom activities. According to him, some books are undergoing minor language-related adjustments, while others are seeing substantial changes in subject matter.

NCTB Chairman Md Mahbubul Haque Patwari said textbooks are revised to some extent every year. However, this year’s revisions are broader in scope as they are being carried out in line with the new government’s policy priorities and electoral commitments. Around 320 teachers and experts from across the country are participating in the process in collaboration with the Institute of Education and Research at the University of Dhaka.

Already, 99 secondary-level textbooks have been revised through a four-day workshop. Work on revising 36 primary-level books is now set to begin. However, these revisions will apply only to next year’s textbooks.

The government also plans to introduce an entirely new curriculum from 2028. However, it has not yet been finalised whether the curriculum will be implemented across all classes simultaneously or in phases.

Every year, the government distributes free textbooks to students from pre-primary to Class Nine. For the coming academic year, there are plans to print around 300 million books for nearly 40 million students. According to the NCTB, all textbooks are expected to be printed and distributed to local levels by 15 November so that students can receive them at the very beginning of the academic year.