Dhaka University's admission tests
Wednesday, 22 October 2008
Dr Md Mahmudul Hasan
THE revised DU admission guidelines 2008-2009 for Kha and Gha units deserve attention of all. Besides the departments of Bangla, English and Mass Communication and Journalism a few more departments have introduced new admission prerequisites, which go against the fundamental rights of a large section of student population of the country. The revised admission guidelines 2008-2009 of Kha and Gha units stipulate that only those students will be eligible for admission in the Departments of Bangla, English, Linguistics, International Relations, Public Administration, Women and Gender Studies, and Mass Communication and Journalism who had obtained 200 marks in each subject of Bangla and English at the HSC level examination.
As the madrassa education system do not have 200 marks in either Bangla or English each, this precondition will obviously bar the madrassa students from studying these valued subjects at the university level. The Alim students of the madrassa system study the same Bangla and English books prescribed by the NCTB as do their college counterparts.
Additionally, the Department of Economics has stipulated that the aspiring students should have Economics at HSC/Alim level and that 'Islamic Economics' is not an alternative to 'Economics'. This particular prerequisite is extremely absurd for the fact that madrassa students study almost the same topics of economics taught at college. The only difference is that the title of their course is 'Islamic Economics'not 'Economics'. Needless to say, they study some additional topics relating to 'Islamic economics'. This prerequisite is particularly ridiculous as the subject of Islamic economics is gaining ground both in the East and West as an important academic discipline.
Study in Dhaka University attracts the entire student population of Bangladesh. Students from alia madrassa background have been doing equally well, if not better than those from college background, in Dhaka University. They have been serving the nation in different capacities. They are teaching in almost all the universities of the country including the departments of English, Law, Mass Communication and Journalism, Sociology and International Relations of the University of Dhaka. Depriving madrassa students of the opportunity to study important subjects of the faculties of arts and social sciences of Dhaka University (DU) would do a great disservice to the nation. It would be a blatant violation of their fundamental human rights. Madrassa students go through the same admission tests, which rigorously test their proficiency in Bangla and English. Madrassa students have been doing well in the admission tests. For example, in 2006-2007 a madrassa student named Abdullah al-Aman stood first in Gha Unit, and second in Kha Unit securing 28.5 out of 30 in English.
For the sake of clarity and fairness, an investigation may be conducted to see how madrassa students have been doing in the departments that intend to debar them from studying those subjects. It would be found that madrassa students, in most of the departments of DU, have been doing well. For example, for the last few years madrassa students have secured top positions in the merit list of the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism. Despite these commendable academic records, introduction of the unnecessary, additional '200 marks prerequisite' will be deemed as prejudicial by the madrassa students.
(The writer is in the Department of English, Dhaka University)
THE revised DU admission guidelines 2008-2009 for Kha and Gha units deserve attention of all. Besides the departments of Bangla, English and Mass Communication and Journalism a few more departments have introduced new admission prerequisites, which go against the fundamental rights of a large section of student population of the country. The revised admission guidelines 2008-2009 of Kha and Gha units stipulate that only those students will be eligible for admission in the Departments of Bangla, English, Linguistics, International Relations, Public Administration, Women and Gender Studies, and Mass Communication and Journalism who had obtained 200 marks in each subject of Bangla and English at the HSC level examination.
As the madrassa education system do not have 200 marks in either Bangla or English each, this precondition will obviously bar the madrassa students from studying these valued subjects at the university level. The Alim students of the madrassa system study the same Bangla and English books prescribed by the NCTB as do their college counterparts.
Additionally, the Department of Economics has stipulated that the aspiring students should have Economics at HSC/Alim level and that 'Islamic Economics' is not an alternative to 'Economics'. This particular prerequisite is extremely absurd for the fact that madrassa students study almost the same topics of economics taught at college. The only difference is that the title of their course is 'Islamic Economics'not 'Economics'. Needless to say, they study some additional topics relating to 'Islamic economics'. This prerequisite is particularly ridiculous as the subject of Islamic economics is gaining ground both in the East and West as an important academic discipline.
Study in Dhaka University attracts the entire student population of Bangladesh. Students from alia madrassa background have been doing equally well, if not better than those from college background, in Dhaka University. They have been serving the nation in different capacities. They are teaching in almost all the universities of the country including the departments of English, Law, Mass Communication and Journalism, Sociology and International Relations of the University of Dhaka. Depriving madrassa students of the opportunity to study important subjects of the faculties of arts and social sciences of Dhaka University (DU) would do a great disservice to the nation. It would be a blatant violation of their fundamental human rights. Madrassa students go through the same admission tests, which rigorously test their proficiency in Bangla and English. Madrassa students have been doing well in the admission tests. For example, in 2006-2007 a madrassa student named Abdullah al-Aman stood first in Gha Unit, and second in Kha Unit securing 28.5 out of 30 in English.
For the sake of clarity and fairness, an investigation may be conducted to see how madrassa students have been doing in the departments that intend to debar them from studying those subjects. It would be found that madrassa students, in most of the departments of DU, have been doing well. For example, for the last few years madrassa students have secured top positions in the merit list of the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism. Despite these commendable academic records, introduction of the unnecessary, additional '200 marks prerequisite' will be deemed as prejudicial by the madrassa students.
(The writer is in the Department of English, Dhaka University)