'Bangladeshi students have had exceptional results at O level for several years but now we are beginning to see real improvements in A le

Tahmina Shafique (TS): For how many years have you been working with the British Council (BC)?

Mark Bartholomew (MB): I have been working with the British Council since 1990. I have worked in Greece, where I did a University of Cambridge Diploma in Teaching English as a Foreign Language, Sri Lanka, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, and Bangladesh. At different times, I have been a teacher of General English, Young Learners, Business Courses and preparation for the IELTS exams courses.

TS: When did you start working in Bangladesh?

MB: I arrived here as the Assistant Director of Studies in July 1999. Within a year I became the Director of British Council, Chittagong, where I stayed for eighteen months. That job was incredible, because I had to look after not only our exam work and teaching, but also the library, and advising students about the best UK universities, etc. So it was an all-round job with fantastic opportunities to look into all the different aspects of our work in Chittagong.

TS: What was your role as the Country Exams Manager in Dhaka?

MB: Well, it was at the end of 2001 when I became the Teaching Centre and Country Exams Manager, a post at Deputy Director level. I started with a sense of inadequacy because we were carrying out ever-increasing numbers of examinations in the same old manner as we had when the operation was much smaller. Candidates still had to visit Dhaka from Sylhet and Rajshahi, not only to sit their exams, but also to register for them and to collect their certificates. It was terrible customer service.

So, we increased the number of cities we were operating in to include Sylhet, Rajshahi and, next year, Khulna too. It seems to me that we need to spread our facilities ever wider, if we are to make UK education and qualifications available not just to those living in the capital but to people all over this country.

Recently, we have made another change. GCE students will be able to sit for their exams in their own schools provided that they have the standards required by the UK exam boards.

We have also extended our opening hours, which are now from 10 to 6 Saturday to Thursday. Candidates are very welcome to visit us at any of our branches if they have questions to ask about exam dates, times, or curriculum content. But, if candidates prefer, they can now register for their exams at any of the 11 outlets of Standard Chartered Bank in the country, without having to come all the way to Fuller Road.

Another improvement is that we have changed our website so that students can look up any information they need. Students of GCE and IELTS candidates can also get their results on the day they are published too, instead of having to travel all the way from, say, Comilla.

TS: As Teaching Centre Manager, how would you sum up the work the British Council does in Bangladesh?

MB: The Teaching Centres in Dhanmondi and Chittagong have done well, despite the number of strikes and our closure during the Iraq war. A recent development is the new project office in Sylhet where we are providing courses for people to improve their English.

We have also introduced a lot of free teacher training programmes in Rajshahi, Khulna, Chittagong, Sylhet and Saidpur over the past two years. I am really pleased that we have been able to contribute to improving educational standards in English medium schools in Bangladesh and hope that this is a role that the British Council will continue to perform for many years to come.

This is only one example of the British Council's commitment to improving education in Bangladesh. Another is our active involvement with the Bangladesh English Language Teachers' Association -- a fine venture, organised by the likes of Dr. Arifa Rahman, Dr. Rubina Khan, and Dil Afroze Quader. At last, we have an association focusing on the development of the profession.

So, you can see that, although the British Council is often criticised for its high fee levels, we are doing a lot of unpaid work as well. I know that our fees are beyond the reach of many Bangladeshis and I am truly sorry that this is the case. However, we pay UK salaries to our teaching staff and also provide them with many other perks to attract them to Bangladesh. We have to do this to maintain our reputation as the best teaching centre in the country. Some coaching centres have asked in their press adverts what the difference is between us and them. I can tell them in one word: quality.

TS: What is your impression about English medium schools In Bangladesh?

MB: I have visited every major school in Dhaka, Chittagong, Sylhet and Rajshahi as well as several other towns in the last five years. I have seen significant improvements in their premises and standards in that time. Five years ago, some schools I visited were dirty, badly decorated, and didn't even have adequate teaching. For example, I visited a school in Dhaka, where a teacher was trying to teach two class ten students Physics in the very same room where class one students were studying poetry. That does not happen anymore!

TS: As Country Exams Manager, you have been able to explore the merits and problems of Bangladeshi students. What are they?

MB: Well, rather than focusing upon the qualities of Bangladeshi students, I would like to talk about the educational system as a whole. I think children should be out playing cricket or playstation at weekends. They should be out there having the time of their lives. But what we see is something quite different. Students are going to different tutors after school when they should be able to play. I understand that the parents want to do their very best for their children, but there has to be a balance between studying and having fun. We have excellent models in Shakil Ahmed with 5 A grades at A level and Rezwanul Haque with 12 A grades at O level. Neither went to a tutor.

I also feel that there is just too much emphasis on grades. Rather than counting the number of As that students of each school have obtained, schools should concentrate on improving the poor grades that other students have obtained. Another worrying issue is that many Bangladeshi students can't read and write Bangla properly. Hopefully with the introduction of Bangladesh Studies we can encourage English medium students to learn more about their own rich language and culture.

TS: Where do you think Bangladeshi students rank in terms of talent?

MB: Bangladeshi students have had exceptional results at O level for several years but now we are beginning to see real improvements in A levels too, something which was a cause of concern before. This is just not from my own experience, but representatives from well known universities like London Metropolitan and Luton have also told me that Bangladeshi students are doing very well indeed.

TS: Who is replacing you as the Country Exams Manager?

MB: Well, it's Richard Sunderland, LLB, from University of Manchester. He has worked and lived most of his life in Australia and the Far East, although at present he is in charge of Business at BC Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Richard has lived a lot of his adult life in Japan with his Japanese wife.

Richard had, in fact, visited Bangladesh before he came last month to meet me. After university, he caught a Biman flight from London to Japan and had an unexpected 3-day stop over in Dhaka. The things he recalls best are the generosity and curiosity of the people. He is looking forward to this new post.

TS: Is he going to take over the post of Teaching Centre Manager too?

MB: Well no, my job is going to be divided into two roles. The new Teaching Centre Manager is going to be Simon Harris. He graduated from Sandhurst, the UK's most prestigious Army training college. He joined BC in Oman as a teacher and then came to Bangladesh on a short-term teaching contract. Afterwards he became the BC branch manager in Salalah, Oman. He then worked as the Assistant Director of Studies for two years at the BC in Amman, Jordan, before becoming TCM in Bulgaria.

He loved Bangladesh so much that he has been trying to return here ever since his first visit. He is absolutely thrilled that he is coming back as the Teaching Centre Manager because it allows him to combine the two things he loves most, South Asia and teaching -- especially teaching English for Business. What he likes best about Bangladesh is the vibrancy of the culture, the richness of its literature and, most importantly, the hospitality of the people and their spontaneity.

TS: What are the things you will miss most about Bangladesh?

MB: Well, there are plenty of things that I will miss here -- especially Chittagong as a whole and the Chittagong Club in particular. I will miss traveling around the country -- I love Sylhet, especially the "go get" attitude of the people. A regret that I have is that I couldn't visit Barisal.

I will miss all those people, including the dedicated and hardworking BC local staff and teachers, who have become really good friends during my stay.

I have enjoyed just being here and getting to know people from rickshaw-pullers to top government officials -- I guess it's a part of the joy of being a foreigner that one can interact with such a wide variety of people. You are treated as someone special here.

In a way its sad that I won't be able see the BC flourish under the leadership of the new Director, Dr. June Rollinson, who has many ongoing projects. I really hope that my job being divided into two posts will mean that the Teaching Centre and the Exams Department can offer better service. I am going to miss the British Council here and Bangladesh very much.