New education system

By Md. Harisur Rahman Department of Anthropology, JU
8 November 2005, 18:00 PM
For the last few weeks we are observing a mixed reaction from our intelligentsia, civil society about the new education system that would be introduced from the next year. The arguments of those against this system has been expressed by many intellectuals like Dr Jafar Iqbal, who has said that science education would be the worst victim of the new secondary education system and the standard would be inevitably low as a student has to study 18 subjects carrying 1,200 marks with less importance on science and mathematics education. He also said that the provision for studying an additional language (Arabic, Sanskrit or Pali) along with religion would add to the burden of the students. Only by bringing changes in the syllabus of the secondary education, the system cannot be called "unified", as it would not incorporate English medium education and madrassah education, he added. I strongly appreciate his thought provoking argument but his apprehension about the new system needs further clarification. First, I will pay my attention to his last point especially, whenever it comes about the word 'unification'. What about madrassah education, which is under scrutiny because of the recent spate of, bomb attacks all over the country? As a hot issue madrassah education has been targeted and politicised indiscriminately. Our society is going to be divided day by day and political intolerance and violence are gaining momentum.

With different ideology, mission and vision, madrassah students are being discriminated in terms of their professional lives and career opportunity and employment. So, why don't we talk about the assimilation of our different types of education system in one track? Why don't we think about a homogenous educated generation in near future so that our society and its people cannot be divided? I would appreciate the government's unified education system if madrassah education could be included within the common programme of education system. In rural areas, science, commerce and humanities groups are very difficult to run in every institution because teachers and all kinds of equipments are not available out there in every madrassah. Moreover, there is no opportunity for commerce education in madrassahs. Science education is also a far cry for most of those institutions. So, a common programme for Bengali track and madrassahs can end all kinds of anomalies.

On reservation about religious education, I would say that it can also be an effective way to mend the rupture of trust between these two streams of our education system. The government can minimise religious courses from madrassah curriculum and make a common religious education with few options for all the students at the secondary level. I think this assimilation process can give us maximum output for the betterment of our society.