Acting headmaster must be replaced every 6 months

The acting headmaster of any secondary school cannot retain the position for more than six months, and if a headmaster has not been appointed within this timeframe, the position must be handed over to another teacher within a month, directs the education ministry.

This was disclosed in a ministry letter containing a five-point directive for such schools, issued last week by the education ministry’s Secondary and Higher Education Division, and signed by Deputy Secretary Mizanur Rahman.

The ministry took the step as some schools are neglecting to appoint headmasters, enabling the acting headmaster to occupy the position indefinitely, and gradually paving the way to become the headmaster themselves.

Only an assistant headmaster may be appointed as the acting headmaster, but only for six months, states the ministry directive.

If a regular headmaster has not been appointed within these six months, the acting headmaster would have to hand over responsibilities to any one of the three most senior assistant teachers of the school within a month.

The MPO Policy 2021 shall be followed for determining an assistant teacher’s seniority. If a teacher serves as acting headmaster for one term, he or she cannot become an acting headmaster again within the next year.

In case it is not possible to appoint a headmaster for a long time due to reasons such as lawsuits or the pandemic, the person occupying the acting headmaster position must be changed every six months until a headmaster can be appointed, the directive
added.