Teachers’ Lived Experiences in Implementing the New Competency-Based Curriculum in Bangladesh: A Qualitative Phenomenological Study
Keywords:
Competency-Based Curriculum, Teachers’ Lived Experiences, Teacher Agency, Curriculum ReformAbstract
The transition toward a Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) in Bangladesh constitutes a major policy reform introduced in 2012, aiming to address documented gaps in students’ higher-order thinking skills and learner-centered practices. While prior studies have predominantly focused on structural constraints and attitudinal surveys, there remains limited phenomenological inquiry into how teachers experience and interpret CBC implementation in practice.. This study employs a qualitative phenomenological design to investigate how secondary school teachers experience, interpret, and negotiate the implementation of CBC in their professional contexts. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with purposively selected teachers who had at least one year of experience implementing the new curriculum. The findings identify three major themes: (1) negotiated transformation, reflecting tensions between pedagogical ideals and classroom realities; (2) structural constraints, including limited resources and large class sizes; and (3) adaptive instructional practices. Participants reported a gradual shift in professional identity-from knowledge transmitters to facilitators-emerging through iterative classroom experimentation and reflective practice. Despite structural limitations, teachers demonstrated adaptive agency by contextualizing and creatively integrating competency-based practices into their classrooms. This study contributes to curriculum reform literature by extending phenomenological perspectives on teacher identity and agency, particularly in resource-constrained educational settings. Practically, it offers context-sensitive insights for policymakers and educational leaders seeking sustainable implementation of CBC. Recognizing teachers’ lived experiences is essential for aligning policy intentions with classroom realities and ensuring meaningful educational transformation.
Downloads
References
Alam, S., & Sarker, R. (2023). Teachers’ perceptions of competency-based curriculum implementation in Bangladesh secondary schools. International Journal of Educational Reform, 32(1), 45–62.
Biesta, G. (2022). The rediscovery of teaching. Routledge.
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2022). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (5th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Darling-Hammond, L., Flook, L., Cook-Huffman, C., Barron, B., & Osher, D. (2020). Implications for educational practice of the science of learning and development. Applied Developmental Science, 24(2), 97–140.
Hennink, M., Hutter, I., & Bailey, A. (2020). Qualitative research methods (2nd ed.). SAGE Publications.
Hossain, M. M., & Akter, S. (2022). Institutional readiness for curriculum reform in Bangladesh: A mixed methods study. Journal of Educational Policy and Practice, 17(4), 302–319.
Islam, R., & Habib, M. (2022). Exploring rural–urban disparities in competency-based learning enactment. Bangladesh Journal of Education Development, 9(2), 99–118.
Kallio, H., Pietilä, A.-M., Johnson, M., & Kangasniemi, M. (2016). Systematic methodological review: Developing a framework for semi-structured interviews. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 72(12), 2954–2965.
Karim, F., Ahmed, T., & Hasan, M. (2023). Professional development challenges in implementing competency-based curriculum: Evidence from Bangladesh. Asian Journal of Teacher Education, 41(3), 271–288.
Kim, L. E., & Asbury, K. (2020). ‘Like a rug had been pulled from under you’: The impact of COVID-19 on teachers’ epistemic perceptions and practices. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 90(4), 1062–1083.
Li, J., & Chen, X. (2022). Teacher agency in curriculum reform: Comparative perspectives from Asia. Curriculum Studies, 54(3), 345–364.
Lincoln, Y. S., & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. SAGE Publications.
Moyo, P. (2021). Navigating curriculum reforms in post-colonial settings: Teacher experiences and agency. Education in the Global South, 3(1), 17–33.
Moustakas, C. (1994). Phenomenological research methods. SAGE Publications.
Neubauer, B. E., Witkop, C. T., & Varpio, L. (2019). How phenomenology can help us learn from the experiences of others. Perspectives on Medical Education, 8(2), 90–97.
Nowell, L. S., Norris, J. M., White, D. E., & Moules, N. J. (2017). Thematic analysis: Striving to meet the trustworthiness criteria. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 16, 1–13.
OECD. (2020). Education at a glance 2020: OECD indicators. OECD Publishing.
Patton, M. Q. (2015). Qualitative research & evaluation methods (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Priestley, M., Biesta, G., & Robinson, S. (2021). Teacher agency: An ecological approach. Educational Review, 73(1), 100–115.
Rahman, A. K. M. M., Chowdhury, S., & Hasan, S. (2024). Understanding challenges of CBC implementation: Voices from teachers in Bangladesh. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 56(2), 247–268.
Vagle, M. D. (2018). Crafting phenomenological research. Routledge.
Zhao, Y., & Watterston, J. (2021). The changing context of school education: Post-COVID implications. Journal of Educational Change, 22(3), 423–446.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Noor Farhana Islam, Rezaul Karim Siddique, Arif Mahmud Chowdhury, Samira Tasnim Rahman (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
