ENTER THE DREAM
When Asif Arman wakes up just half an hour before his class at 8 in the morning, his heart skips a beat. He is going to be a laughing stock in the class again. Yesterday after missing the roll call he requested the professor to mark him for a late attendance and the professor coldly replied, “Boy this is not your village school, is it? Just be present in time.” In front of 60 students, the 25 young women included, the reply that pointed to his rural background shattered his confidence. Asif says, “It is my first week at the university. I felt so ashamed yesterday that I decided not to be late to class again.”
It explains why Asif decides to forgo breakfast and gets himself ready for class when the clock strikes 7:30. Luckily he saves the day's roll call but his plight refuses to end here. Just after 20 minutes into the class, he feels as though keeping his eyes open for one and half hour of sociology lecture has been one of the most difficult tasks in the world.
It doesn't go unnoticed. The professor catches him just when he is about to take a snooze. “Hey, boy! What's your problem? Had a smashing party last night, eh? Go throw some water into your face.” Then after solemnly passing the rest of the class Asif reveals the mystery of the last night's 'smashing party'.
Asif says, “When hundreds of bedbugs become your bedfellow, it's not possible for anyone to get a wink of sleep.” The dormitories of Dhaka University, especially in the men's one, is infested with bedbugs. Asif says, “I didn't even know what bedbugs are. But here I pass most of the time at night killing these blood suckers.” Bedbugs are only a small part of the hundreds of challenges students like Asif face every year to stay in the university halls.
Aklima Akhtar Tanni, a student of the university's Institute of Education & Research (IER) who comes from a remote village in Netrokona, explains her survival strategy, as she says, “After getting admitted into the highest echelon of knowledge in Bangladesh, I felt as though I was on cloud nine. But when I got to know that I had to wait for an indefinite period to have a seat in the dorm I became worried. For some months I stayed at a girl's hostel which was not safe at all. After six months of waiting I got a seat in a gono room (common room) of Shamsunnahar Hall. I stayed in the room with sixteen girls, and it was so dirty that I had to spend a lot of time cleaning it up. At first I faced a lot of problems but maintaining a good relationship with the roommates and seniors has turned out to be quite beneficial. Following their advices, I have overcome every challenge I have faced. Now after three years in the dorm I can say that I really enjoy this life.”
Life in the dorm with lots of friends is a fascinating one. But there are some obstacles on the way. Unlike the women's hostel, to get accommodation in the men's hostel at DU requires political and diplomatic skills. Jakir Hossain, Tanni's classmate, who is from the Maheshkhali island of Chittagong says, “In the first year of university we have to get a political big brother and ensure that we are the diehard activists of the ruling political party. After our loyalty is proven, we are allowed to stay in the gono room, a common room for eight students but the actual number of inhabitants usually is more than 30. Then by increasing our political affiliation and activities we are allotted the better rooms."
Like the DU, in most of the public universities, a fresher, especially one who lives in the dorm, has to face some intense political challenges. It is impossible for any student to stay in the hall without having an affiliation of the student wing of the ruling political party. Asif, from the political science department says, “We are forced to attend political programmes many times, sometimes even bunking classes. If we spend too much time in the library or simply outside the dorm we are summoned by the big brothers at the daily meeting to the “guest room.” If we are found guilty of being absent in the political programmes for silly reasons like class and study we get severe punishment.”
Political meeting in the 'guestroom' actually decides the new comer's fate in the dorm. But Rakib Hasan of the department of Philosophy points out to another side of it. He says, “Meeting in the guestroom also teaches us courtesy and manners and builds a good relationship with the seniors. We get a lot of help from them regarding our study and future career.” This brotherly relationship among the students makes dorm life one of the best memories students' take with them when they graduate. Jakir shares one of his experiences, “One day we heard that one of our fresher roommates in Surja Sen Hall had taken his mother to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital. He was not very solvent and had no other place in Dhaka to keep her. We collected money from every room and funded the entire cost of her treatment. It has now become a general practice among us.”
But many freshers don't want to face such challenges in the very first year of study. Shoumik Sadman Anwar, a first year student of Management department says, “If I cannot cope with the political culture of the dorm my result will be hampered. That's why I have rented a room at Farmgate.”
For these students Dhaka University has another charm to offer. It's the legendary red bus with poetic names such as Taranga, Boishakhi, Falguni, Khanika etc. These buses bring students from all parts of Dhaka and its outskirts to the university. Jyoti B Shuci a fresher of psychology department says, “I love the bus ride. It helps us a lot to reach our class and exam on time. The ride with my friends is also fun.”
But for many new comers especially those from a madrassa background, entering the university life is quite a challenge. These students are only allowed to admit into 13 departments out of thirty five. Abdur Rahman a student of Tamirul Millat Kamil Madrassa has become a popular name in DU, thanks to his outstanding result in the DU admission test. He was the top scorer in both D unit and B units. Abdur Rahman says, “Whatever my result in the admission test is I am not allowed to get admitted into the Departments of English, Economics, Sociology and a lot of other good subjects. But the irony is that I was one of the two candidates who had the required marks to study English. I don't know how this sort of discrimination exists in a civilised country.”
Each year Dhaka University welcomes thousands of newcomers with some immensely diversified facilities in its campus. The TSC of DU alone houses no less than 36 cultural, skill development and volunteer organisations. Its gymnasium, swimming pool and health complex offer an array of healthy recreation for the students. However Jyoti points out an important lacking, “I am going be a second year student soon, but I don't even know where the gymnasium is or how and where to apply for my health card. If the university formally introduce us to these facilities via a campus tour we will be able to makes the best use of our awesome campus.”
Like Jyoti the campus is a matter of pride for most of the DU students. While studying in the TSC or while walking along the Fuller road they feel the essence of history that has given birth to Bangladesh. Sifat Raihan a student of Economics says, “I was selected to join the army. But I didn't go for it only to study in this university. DU shapes Bangladesh.”
But the past prestige of this university is fading. The tradition of scholarly research is replaced by political violence and other malpractices. Sharfun Islam, a third year student of Political Science shares her experience, “I was and am still very proud of my alma mater. But here I have faced some bleak realities. I have noticed that many students are appearing in the exam only by memorising notes. Field research or laboratory facilities are very limited. I think our country's epitome of education should be better equipped and more research oriented.”
Sharfun's concern has now become a national issue. Thousands of students sit for the admission test to get admitted but only a handful of them manage to succeed. For these highly talented successful ones what is offered is not at all satisfactory. Now another batch of new comers is being enrolled for higher studies with a heart filled with dreams. Appropriately using the existing resources, if we can provide these freshers with what they need, the environment of higher education will improve a lot. And if we can ensure it, it is us and our nation who will be benefitted in near future.
The writer can be contacted at [email protected]
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