A decision has not been taken to extend the weekend in educational institutions to resolve the ongoing crisis. However, education minister Dipu Moni said that the government is thinking about this.

She said this at a seminar organized on the occasion of the 17th National Conference and National Mourning Day of Bangladesh Polytechnic Teachers Association on Friday (August 12).

The minister answered various questions of the journalists in the seminar titled 'Shok Hok Shakti, Karigiri Shiksha i Mukti' organized at Bangabandhu Auditorium of Dhaka Polytechnic Institute.

The education minister informed about various new curriculum and projects of the government in technical education.

She said, ‘We are giving great importance to acquiring technical skills. We want to ensure that our students are competent. The Sheikh Hasina government has looked at the aspects that need to be looked into for the development of students as humane, creative people. ’

‘Before this we could not hire teachers for a long time. However, recently we have recruited 5000 technical teachers. The education minister also said that he hopes that there will be no problem related to recruitment soon,’ she added.

The minister said that MPO admission was closed for about 10 years in the middle. Past governments have incorporated MPOs through personal communication or other means. But, during the Sheikh Hasina government, this program is being conducted in a completely digital manner in a transparent manner.

She also said that the government is thinking about having at least one technical training center project in each upazila.

Earlier, 50 institutions were given Tk 70 crore for labs and ancillary works. Many organizations could not ensure proper use of that money. So, it will not only be allotted, students should use it to acquire skills.

The education minister said that there is a tendency of admitting additional students in educational institutions without considering the capacity. This trend exists in all educational institutions, at all levels. Dhaka city's newest institute has 66 students per class, they want to increase it to 75 students. She thinks that it should be reduced from 66.

She said, ‘The kind of development we want, the kind of development we are talking about, will not happen like this. We will try to improve the quality. To keep it right, the tendency to increase the numbers must be checked.’

The education minister also said that students should be prepared to produce skilled manpower suitable for the fourth industrial revolution. Technical education rates and enrollments are higher in countries that are more developed. But, on the contrary, technology is taught to less talented and less privileged students in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh Technical Education Board course evaluation expert Dr. presented the main article in the seminar. Shah Alam Majumdar. Director General of Technical Education Department (Additional Secretary) spoke as a special guest. Md. Omar Farooq

President of Bangladesh Polytechnic Teachers Association (BAPSHIS) (Central Executive Council). Aman Ullah Khan Yusufji presided over the welcome speech, general secretary of Bapsis G. M. Aktar Hossain, Dhaka Polytechnic Institute Principal Engineer Kazi Zakir Hossain. Various members and teachers of Bapsis were present.

Education Minister Dipu Moni said, in the previous exams we saw that attempts were made to leak question papers at various places. But they did not succeed. We are adopting innovative strategies and strict monitoring to stop question leaking. However, strict action will be taken if anyone tries to spread rumors or leak questions.

The minister said this while talking to reporters after visiting Begum Badrunnesa Govt. Girls’ College centre in the capital on Sunday (November 6).

The Higher Secondary School Certificate (HSC) and equivalent examinations are set to begin today (November 6). Bangla first paper exam will be held at 11:00 am on Sunday, on the very first of the schedule.

Meanwhile, special measures have been taken for dengue patients. Also, it has been asked to sprinkle mosquito spray in and around the center to reduce the risk of HSC candidates.

This year, 12 lakh 3 thousand 407 candidates from 9 thousand 181 educational institutions will participate in the examination in 2 thousand 649 centers. Among them, 6 lakh 22 thousand 796 are male students and 5 lakh 80 thousand 611 are female students. Last year the number of candidates was 13 lakh 99 thousand 690.

As per the scheduled, the written examination will continue till December 13. After the written exam, practical exam will be held from 15th December to 22nd December.

Usually HSC exam starts in April. But due to corona situation, it was not possible to take this exam at the scheduled time. SSC and HSC exams were postponed due to massive floods in some districts including Sylhet.

Education Minister Dipu Moni said on October 19 that coaching centers will be closed for 42 days across the country due to the HSC examination. Accordingly, all coaching centers are closed since November 3, which will continue till December 14.

This year's Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and its equivalent examinations results will likely be published any day between November 27 and 30, said Inter-Education Coordinating Board President and Dhaka Education Board Chairman Tapan Kumar Sarker.

The SSC and equivalent examination of this year was held simultaneously between September 15 and October 1. The practical examination was held between October 10 to October 15.  

The work of preparation for SSC and equivalent exam result has already started. Many examiners have started evaluating the answer sheets and sending them to the education board. Somewhere again in the last step, the assessment is being verified. The result may be declared between 27th and 30th of November.

When asked about this matter, the President of the Inter-Education Coordination Board and Chairman of Dhaka Education Board Professor Tapan Kumar Sarkar told the media on Tuesday (October 25) that the evaluation of SSC answer sheets is underway and will end by mid-November.

He said the results are published within 60 days of the completion of the examination. The proposal will be sent to the Ministry of Education in the first week of November, mentioning the possible time between November 27 to 30 or December 1 for the publication of the results. The proposal will be sent to the Prime Minister from the ministry. The result will be announced after getting consent from Prime Minister.

A total of 20 lakh 21 thousand 868 students participated in this year's SSC and equivalent examinations under 11 boards. This exam was held in 3,790 centers across the country. Following the disruption of in-person teaching due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year's exam was conducted on a short syllabus.

Education Minister Dipu Moni today said it may take up to ten years to see real benefits of the new curriculum.

“If we can implement the new curriculum properly, we will start to see little changes over the next five years. After ten years, we will see big changes,” she added.

The education minister was speaking at a Dhaka event on a study entitled ‘Exploring Attitude towards Gender Norms among the Youth Population in Bangladesh’, organised by Brac on the occasion of Girl Child Day.

From next year, students will get a new curriculum, she said. “Through it, we can expect a big shift in the education system.”

Regarding the rights of the girl children, Dipu Moni urged everyone to work together.

- UNB