Foundations and principles

2. Why this matters in Bangladesh

In many Bangladeshi early years settings, children aged three to five are already expected to behave like miniature secondary students. It is common to see nursery classes focussed on handwriting drills, memorising numbers and letters, and preparing children for a rapid transition into exam-style tasks.

This is usually driven by genuine care and high ambition. Parents want the best for their children. Schools and teachers want to show visible academic progress. But when early years education becomes dominated by premature academic outcomes, the result is often:

• Shallow language development and weak comprehension.
• Fragile attention and poor self-regulation.
• High levels of anxiety around learning and performance.
• Thin literacy foundations that struggle to support later reading and writing.
• Increased risk of disengagement and dropout as content becomes more demanding.

The research is clear: pushing academic content too early tends to damage, not accelerate, long-term learning. For Bangladesh, where educational inequalities remain strong, early childhood is not a nice-to-have phase. It is the critical equity stage. If we get it right, we reduce the need for later remediation. If we get it wrong, we widen gaps that are very hard to close in secondary school.

The EBTD Early Years Framework (Bangladesh, BD) offers a different direction. It is not softer. It is smarter. It does not slow children down. It gives them deeper, more secure foundations for future learning.

3. The four core principles for early years practice in Bangladesh

Based on international research and the EYFS principles, the EBTD Early Years Framework for Bangladesh rests on four core foundations.

3.1 Every child is an individual

Children are not blank slates or containers to be filled with content. They differ in language exposure, emotional maturity, attention patterns, home environments and physical development. Bangladeshi classrooms often emphasise uniformity and standardisation. Early years education must instead prioritise responsiveness.

This does not mean abandoning standards. It means acknowledging that children travel towards those standards at different speeds and along different routes.

3.2 Learning is built through relationships

Children learn best when they feel safe, secure and emotionally connected to adults. In Bangladeshi culture, the teacher already holds a position of moral and emotional authority. The framework strengthens that role by positioning the teacher as:

• a secure base for exploration;
• a responsive guide who notices and responds to children’s needs;
• a language partner who thinks and talks with children, not just at them;
• a model of self-regulation and respectful interaction.

Attachment, not authority alone, is the foundation of early learning.

3.3 Environments shape thinking

An enabling environment is not defined by how much equipment it contains, but by how intelligently the space and routines are designed. Good environments provide opportunities for exploration, language, movement, interaction and independence.

In Bangladesh, where resources vary widely across schools, this principle is essential: effective early years environments are not rich in imported toys. They are rich in opportunities for meaningful interaction and problem-solving.

3.4 Development happens at different rates

Early education in Bangladesh often rewards speed. Children who speak, write or calculate quickly are praised; those who need more time are labelled as weak. Yet development is not a race. Some children speak early. Some move early. Some struggle early. All develop differently.

The role of early years education is not to accelerate children unnaturally, but to support them appropriately. This principle protects children from harmful comparisons and inappropriate pressure, and keeps the focus on steady, secure growth rather than short-term performance.

4. What this looks like in practice

In a classroom shaped by these principles, an observer would notice different patterns to those found in many traditional early years settings.

• Teachers talking with children, not only instructing them.
• Children exploring through structured play and guided activities, not only filling worksheets.
• Movement and talk woven into the day alongside quiet tasks.
• Emotional needs recognised and responded to, not dismissed as misbehaviour.
• Routines designed for security and independence, not purely for control.

For example, a teacher notices a child struggling to sit still during a long whole-class explanation. Instead of punishing the child, the teacher provides shorter, focused interactions followed by purposeful movement and hands-on tasks.

In another classroom, a teacher spends time discussing a story in Bangla to develop deep understanding and emotional connection before introducing a small number of key English words. The academic content is still present, but it is built on a much stronger base.

5. Practical tools and strategies

Although this page is foundational, there are practical steps that schools and teachers can begin immediately. The aim is not to redesign everything at once, but to realign daily practice with what we know about early learning.

5.1 Classroom reflection tool

Invite teachers to reflect honestly on their current practice using questions such as:

• How often do children speak compared to adults in my classroom?
• Where in the day do children have genuine opportunities to explore and make choices?
• How many meaningful chances for talk do children get in each hour?
• Do children feel safe enough to make mistakes and ask questions?

5.2 Environmental audit

Together as a team, walk through the classroom and consider:

• Are there spaces for quiet, for talk and for play?
• Is children’s language visible on the walls in Bangla and, where appropriate, English?
• Can children access materials themselves, or is everything locked away?
• Do displays celebrate thinking and process, or only perfect final products?

5.3 Relationship practices

Encourage simple, powerful routines that strengthen relationships:

• Daily one-to-one conversations with at least a few different children.
• Emotional check-ins (“How are you feeling today?”) as part of morning routines.
• Regular storytelling and shared talk sessions where children’s ideas are listened to and extended.