A night guard turns vanguard

A classroom (top) at Lyceum International English School at remote Singra village in Magura and Khondokar Mahbubur Rahman taking his students to school.. PHOTO: STAR

Guardians are now eager to send their children to Lyceum International English School at Singra village in Shalikha upazila in the district. But it can not accommodate more than 128 now from play group to class five.

Besides, the student-teacher ratio must be appropriate to ensure quality education and healthy atmosphere, he says. There are 12 teachers including Mahbub, who is the headmaster. The rest 11 are women.

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"Local people's worries are over now because they do not think to run to district or upazila headquarters to ensure good education for their children.

"Lyceum International School is providing the facility in an area where most of the people are poor farmers", local Union Parishad Chairman told this correspondent during a visit.

Rakib Uddin Ahmed, a guardian of a student said, "The school provides our children with good education as founder-headmaster Mahbub is very and devoted."

Khondokar Mahbubur Rahman, 40, is the son of late Golam Mawla of Shablat village in Shalikha upazila.

After appearing at BA examination in 1989 from Kamar Khali College in Faridpur, Mahbub started his career as a teacher in Al-Rabeta Cadet Mission in Chachra in Jessore district. He lost his job centring a dispute among its directors. He then thought of establishing a good school.

In the mean time, Mahbub was forced to take the job of a night guard at Singra bazaar due to poverty.

In 2000, with the cooperation of Abul Bashar, Lecturer at Shaheed Serajuddin Hossain College, and his small savings, Mahbub hired a room at Dhaneswargati Union Parishad office and started grooming up some children.

"After about four years' efforts, I purchased six decimal land on the western side of Singra-Thoipara road and erected a two-room tin-shed house with bamboo fence", Mahbub said.

The distinctive feature is that Mahbub himself drives a nasimon (shallow engine-driven autotempo) to bring students to school by 9-00 am and to get them back home after classes are over at 3-00 pm.

Not only that. Independence Day, International Mother Language Day, Victory Day, Pahela Baisakh (1st day of Bengali year) and such other national occasions are observed at the school with great enthusiasm.

Overcoming the distance of age, Mahbub is very friendly with students, who are also fond of him. Names of all the students is in his memory.

"I was deprived of good education. I want that all children in my area get the chance of good education.

"I will expand the school and bring a highly qualified headmaster", a generous Mahbub further said.