English in context of Bangladesh needed
Speakers at a press conference yesterday said Bangladesh is yet to have any effective plans to an English language development programme in tune with country's socio-cultural context.
While focus increased on using “communicative approach” to teach English since the 90's, progress of English language education in the country remained minimal, they said.
The opinions came at a press conference in the city's Jatiya Press Club ahead of the 5th Bangladesh English Language Teachers Association (BELTA) International Conference 2011 to be held in the city's Biam Foundation from May 20 to 22.
The conference will be jointly organised by BELTA and English in Action (EIA), a not-for-profit language education programme.
“English language curriculum reform in Bangladesh needs to address the requirements for appropriate teaching materials and a suitable assessment system,” said Dr Sharmistha Das, educational adviser of EIA.
However, the reform needs a holistic approach with collaboration from all relevant authorities and stakeholders including students and their parents, the speakers said.
“We need to announce that, yes, we need change in how English is taught,” said Arifa Rahman of BELTA, adding, “This reform needs a collaborative effort.”
The conference seeks to bring together over 550 teachers, researchers and experts from 10 countries to share experiences, research findings and opinions on ways to improve English teaching, the speakers said.
“In some ways, Bangladesh is way ahead when it comes to English language education,” said Mike Solly, head of secondary intervention, EIA, adding that there is room for much improvement.
The EIA programme, a nine-year 50-million-pound project, is designed to change approaches to learning English, aiming to benefit around 25 million Bangladeshis, Solly said.
BELTA President Dr Rubina Khan, Vice President Dil Afroze Quader and EIA Team Leader Marc Van Der Stouwe also spoke.
Comments