Education at the tertiary level

Quality higher education prepares people for the knowledge-based economy and also provides stimuli for creativity and innovation

President Abdul Hamid who is also the vice chancellor of all the universities of the country at a meeting on Tuesday stressed the need for the universities to take necessary measures for ensuring quality higher education. It goes without saying that we agree with the President as higher education is evidently a critical element of development which a country like Bangladesh must build if it is to make progress in the contemporary world that feeds on knowledge and breeds on competition. The only way a Bangladesh can narrow its income gap with developed world economies is by using knowledge earned by graduates from the universities.

Mechanisms for assuring the best possible quality must be put in place in the various institutions to enable them take a critical self analysis of their programmes and institutional capacity. Quality higher education prepares people for the knowledge-based economy and also provides a stimulus for creativity and innovation. Universities need to ensure international standards of quality and education that is professionally and socially relevant to 21st-century realities. The seats of higher learning must prepare graduates to live and work in a globalised world with equal advantage.

Unfortunately for Bangladesh, higher education had witnessed a long period of stagnation. Naturally the neglect has resulted in a gross decline–especially regarding quality of teaching and research activities– in the quality of higher education and unfortunately this decline became evident at a time when higher education was experiencing escalating enrolments, declining resources, academic brain-drain, etc.  

The standard of the faculty and their devotion to teaching has come under scrutiny. Also many students not prepared for tertiary education are getting admitted to the universities. The high pass rates at HSC and SSC exams do not necessarily mean that the standards have improved correspondingly.

Just as it is impossible to construct a building without strong foundation it would be unwise to expect an improvement in standards in higher education without standards in higher education without improving the quality of primary, secondary and higher secondary institutes.

Most countries with a vision for the future have recognised that education in general and quality higher education in particular are the keys to overall growth. They are devoting a large share of the national income and encouraging the private sector to improve the academic institutions. If Bangladesh does not follow suit it will continue to lag behind in the global economy.

Education at the tertiary level

Quality higher education prepares people for the knowledge-based economy and also provides stimuli for creativity and innovation

President Abdul Hamid who is also the vice chancellor of all the universities of the country at a meeting on Tuesday stressed the need for the universities to take necessary measures for ensuring quality higher education. It goes without saying that we agree with the President as higher education is evidently a critical element of development which a country like Bangladesh must build if it is to make progress in the contemporary world that feeds on knowledge and breeds on competition. The only way a Bangladesh can narrow its income gap with developed world economies is by using knowledge earned by graduates from the universities. Mechanisms for assuring the best possible quality must be put in place in the various institutions to enable them take a critical self analysis of their programmes and institutional capacity. Quality higher education prepares people for the knowledge-based economy and also provides a stimulus for creativity and innovation. Universities need to ensure international standards of quality and education that is professionally and socially relevant to 21st-century realities. The seats of higher learning must prepare graduates to live and work in a globalised world with equal advantage. Unfortunately for Bangladesh, higher education had witnessed a long period of stagnation. Naturally the neglect has resulted in a gross declineespecially regarding quality of teaching and research activities in the quality of higher education and unfortunately this decline became evident at a time when higher education was experiencing escalating enrolments, declining resources, academic brain-drain, etc. The standard of the faculty and their devotion to teaching has come under scrutiny. Also many students not prepared for tertiary education are getting admitted to the universities. The high pass rates at HSC and SSC exams do not necessarily mean that the standards have improved correspondingly. Just as it is impossible to construct a building without strong foundation it would be unwise to expect an improvement in standards in higher education without standards in higher education without improving the quality of primary, secondary and higher secondary institutes. Most countries with a vision for the future have recognised that education in general and quality higher education in particular are the keys to overall growth. They are devoting a large share of the national income and encouraging the private sector to improve the academic institutions. If Bangladesh does not follow suit it will continue to lag behind in the global economy.