Textbook Errors: Action after investigation

The government would take actions against those responsible for the errors in school textbooks and measures for correcting those following findings of the probes, Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said yesterday.

"We're waiting for the probe reports. Once we get the reports, we'll take measures on the basis of the findings …" he told reporters at a press briefing at his ministry's conference room in the secretariat. 

"Those who have made the mistakes do not deserve to be spared," he said.

Two probe committees have been formed in the wake of widespread criticism over some embarrassing blunders in school textbooks, especially at the primary level.

The National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) formed a committee on January 6, and the secondary and higher secondary division of the education ministry another three-member probe body on Monday to find out the errors and those responsible for them.

Meanwhile, the NCTB yesterday suspended one of its artist/designer, Sujaul Abedin, on the basis of its preliminary investigation. 

About the mistakes, the minister said, "There are some errors [in the textbooks], and there might be in the future. Angels do not make mistakes, human beings do."

He, however, said some mistakes should have been averted.

"Getting the NCTB's preliminary investigation report, we promptly made two officers OSD [officer on special duty] for the mistakes which should not have happened," Nahid said.

They would take further actions against the people responsible after getting the probe reports, he said. 

The errors can be corrected in some ways, he said, adding, "We can issue directives to the schools with the corrections or elimination of specific pages."

The minister called upon all not to discourage the schoolchildren by harping on the errors only.

Getting new textbooks in time is a matter of joy for the students. "Mistakes may happen and the persons involved in the incident must face trial for the mistakes … but it's not appropriate to keep on pointing to the errors only. It discourages the students," he said.

"I'm not avoiding my responsibility, but I'm leaving the matter to you whether handing over such a volume of textbooks is a bigger thing than these errors," Nahid added.

He said the NCTB did not get enough time to review primary school textbooks as it has to print the textbooks, complying with some "extra" conditions of the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, who bear a portion of textbook publication costs.

Referring to a post that was trolled in Facebook, he said there is an illustration in Bangla textbook for class-I where a goat is seen eating a mango standing under the tree.

But what was circulated was something different, where many goats were seen climbing up a mango tree, he said holding the page.

"We'll look into whether using such an illustration in the textbook was proper, but the picture that was uploaded on YouTube and other platforms should not have been uploaded," Nahid said.

About the goof  -- "Do not heart anybody" -- in class-III Hindu Shikkha textbook, he said, "We cannot spare the person who edited the book."

Mentioning the mistake in the rhyme "Adarsha Chhele" in class-III Bangla textbook, he said the editor of the book is not at all eligible for the job; otherwise he would not have done the mistake of such a popular rhyme.

There has been a storm of criticism over the errors in the textbooks in the social media platforms and other forums soon after the government started distributing some 36.21 crore copies of textbooks among 4.26 crore students of pre-primary, primary and secondary students on January 1.