The New Nation - Internet Edition

Dolly Akter

It was one of the happiest days in Mahins life. The result of his Masters degree examination was published and he did well. Delighted, Mahins parents thought their hard time was over as their son obtained the highest degree and would soon get a job to bring happiness and prosperity to their family. But that was not to be.

Mahin, the eldest in the family, tried heart and soul with his MA degree in Political Science to have a job but he could not manage one. So, his family continues to suffer. Our son has obtained the highest degree of the land. We had thought he would get a job to pull us out of the misery,regrets Mahins father Ashraf Ali.

Ali, his wife and three children live in a colony in Royerbagh area. Ashraf used to work in Adamjee Jute Mill. Since the closure of the countrys largest jute mill a few years back, he remained unemployed. Its really difficult for me to bear the education expenses of my three children,Ali says.

This is the age of competition. Qualification cannot always ensure a job. Besides, my Masters degree is in Political Science, which couldnt help my cause in getting a job,a frustrated Mahin says.

He further says, I even dont have the opportunity to work as a private tutor because guardians always look for science students. They think students with arts background wont be able to teach well. So, Ive decided not to let my sister study humanities.

Mahins sister, Salma, is a student of class eight. She says, Though my brother was a very good student, he is not finding any job. Therefore, Ive made up my mind that Ill study Commerce from class nine.

There is nothing unique in Salmas case. Many guardians are these days reluctant to let their children study arts for various reasons. Students are also unwilling to read humanities. As a result, the number of students in Arts group in schools is decreasing day by day.

The headmaster of Jatrabari Ideal School says 400 students got registered this year in class nine of his school and of them 275 are in Science group, 110 in Business studies and only 15 in Arts group.

He says students have to read fewer books in science and commerce. The syllabus of commerce group is not as wide as of humanities. And on many occasions, Arts students do not get expected results even after working hard. Therefore, students are becoming less interested in studying humanities.

A senior teacher of the same school says many guardians these days simply force their children to study science for practical reasons. But many talented students find science hard and ultimately fare badly in their examinations.

Syeeda Tahmina, an official at Dhaka Education Board, says the standard of education in Bangladesh is not good and there are problems in its system too. After doing well in arts, many young people just remain unemployed, leaving their parents frustrated.

A guardian, who is in Bangladesh Navy, says he will never let his children study humanities because he thinks less talented students usually study humanities. There is no alternative to science if anyone wants to become a doctor or an engineer.

A senior teacher at Government Laboratory High School says only science education can prepare Bangladesh to face the challenges of the 21st century.

Ehsanul Kabir, headmaster of Agradoot Bidya Niketon High School, says todays kids want to secure good marks by studying less. But an arts student has to study and memorise more.

He further says in his school out of 85 class nine students only one has been registered in arts group. You cant provide separate teachers for just one student.

The assistant headmaster of the school feels sorry for the fact that arts group is gradually disappearing from schools. Well forget our history if arts group disappears. The country wont get good politicians and economists if this happens,he says.

A teacher of the University Laboratory School, Dhaka, says, if the arts group is to be discarded from secondary schools it will have to be done through a process. In this regard, he mentions the unified education system.

Will the arts teachers lose their jobs if arts group disappears?

A teacher says they are unlikely to lose jobs. Instead, well be accommodated in other classes.

An arts teacher at Lalmatia High School says the standard of education will fall if the arts group does not have enough students.

Asked about it, former Dhaka Education Board chairman Professor Monirul Islam says if anyone wants to build himself in his own way at this competitive age everybody should be cooperative.

Another official of Dhaka Board says, Nowadays weve science everywhere. Look at the Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) examinations. If you want to succeed, you need to know science because science and mathematics are compulsory here.

A senior official of the Education Ministry says, Things are not that much bad. As far as I know the number of arts students in rural schools is still high. Many of them fare well in their exams. But they cant have higher education from good institutions for lack of opportunity.

There are many schools in the country where science cannot be taught for lack of laboratory facilities. So, its not right that arts group will disappear. However, in urban areas guardians are taking more interest in science due to competition,he says.