Opinion

A way to evaluate student performance

How do you measure a student's progress? Grades may not be it.
The Wizarding World before Harry Potter

The wizarding world of Harry Potter is where many of us lost ourselves in growing up. It's difficult to express just how drawn in we were—I could never wrap my head around the genius that JK Rowling is and the world she had created.
The “I'm Not Like Other People” Syndrome

Every so often, I'll conduct a purge on my social media platforms, just to clear out people that I never interact with.
Fake News and the Cult of Outrage

Fake news was a phrase popularised by Donald Trump during his run for the US presidency in 2016. However, fake news is more than just a tool used to discredit or delegitimise the media for one's own agenda.
The Fault in Our Bookstores

I don't remember the last time I could eye a book from my wish-list in the local stores. Novels by emerging voices, shortlisted for Man Booker, Pulitzer, and other prestigious prizes are barely seen.
The Jump from A Levels to Admission Season

Remember the good old days after O levels when everyone used to tell you about A levels being the hardest obstacle you'll need to go through in life? I can almost hear you laughing in pain, fellow university admission candidates.
Job-shaming: it's too real

Many of you reading this article will be graduates in the next couple of years. During that time, you'll see people from your batch getting great opportunities at the top companies. However, those positions are limited in number. So, the rest will have to miss out on those jobs.
How much is too much for the students?

With results being politicised and the scrutiny and shame that follows, a walkthrough in the life of a Bangladeshi student in the current decade is probably one of the most challenging and daunting tasks that exists.
Driving is no child's play

Oftentimes we find ourselves complaining as to why we should be restricted from doing certain things just because we are underage or do not have a documented right to do it yet.
How to smoothly transition from SSC to HSC

For someone studying under the national curriculum, the Higher Secondary Certificate examination is undoubtedly the most pivotal one. With it being the last hurdle under the national curriculum and carrying significant weight in the admission process ahead, the preparation for it requires quite a bit of emphasis. While it is true that the experiences from multitude of public examinations preceding HSC help the examinee to be better prepared, the fact also remains that the shift from SSC and HSC is a huge one.
The normalisation of sexual violence

For someone who falls asleep within seconds at any given time or place, there are very few things in the world that can keep me up at night. Coming across the disturbing image of a severed head is one way to kiss your sleep goodbye.
Question leaks: a rot in the core

I write from my experience of being part of the most recent batch of HSC graduates, and being familiar with people a couple of years either side of my own age, question leaks isn't a new phenomena. It has been there as a thorn at the side of students for at least 5 years (in its current form of online leakage), but has taken an abnormally long time to find the public spotlight it merits.
The cricket coach conundrum

The Bangladesh national cricket team is without a coach again, and an array of experienced foreigners are being interviewed for the job while former captain Khaled Mahmud Sujon acts as interim coach.
What is happen to our education?

Scratching your head while reading the title? Terribly phrased questions like “What is happen to disobey law?”, "What would happen if no the Mujibnagar govt was formed?", “What is happened in the people of this country as a result of 'divide and rule' policy of British?
A wholesome addiction: Masterchef Australia

In the year 2010, my simple life as a ninth grader consisted of me going to school, getting back home and watching TV, and then talking to my friends about the stuff I watched on TV. There was Supernatural, number one fan favourite among our pubescent selves.
Where did natoks go wrong?

This isn't going to be some light-hearted jab at the industry, I'm genuinely disappointed with the way we handled a creative medium
HSC Results 2017: The fallout

As the sales at sweetshops return back to normal, the dancing students in schoolyards go back home to prepare for admission tests...
13 REASONS WHY MORE THINGS WRONG THAN RIGHT

The past few weeks, at least for young audiences of American television in Bangladesh, have been rife with different variations of the same discussion.
Learning Bigotry from the Textbook

News had emerged in local media over the last couple of weeks about the changes in the new NCTB textbooks in circulation at the beginning of 2017 academic year.
2016 was THE worst. Now what?

The end of the world is a pretty commonplace incident.
Elephants Tortured for our Entertainment

A few weeks ago, I went on a trip to Borneo, Malaysia with my grade for a school trip. This trip was very educational for me because I learned a lot about endangered animals and it opened my eyes to a lot of things I never thought was relevant to our world.
Higher Education - Thoughts on Moving to Trump's USA

“I feel so conflicted right now,” a friend's status read – shared along with a Trump interview on the Middle East Conflict. “He's starting to sound so sensible.”
Put us, students, first!

Blessed are the people who have gone through their entire lives without having one single teacher they were disgruntled with.
Empathy, Abuse & Animals

Under all the viral animal abuse videos, almost unfailingly, there are comments that ask, “How would you feel if someone did that to you?” This question is not trivial, in fact, it demands for a sign of empathy on the part of the abuser.
SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO?

For those who get to choose, it's usually a no-brainer to decide on settling abroad to pursue a career instead of Bangladesh.
Of humans and cats: who owns whom?

I have always had a love-hate relationship with my cats. Underneath those irresistible coats of fur, lurk ego-crushing and demeaning beings who will make one's heart go mushy and then squash it into pulp with its very demeanour, like your ex.
Right to Safe School Commute

Around 12:30 pm on August 24, 2016 a girl – an 8th grader – was stabbed in front of her school, Willes Little Flower School and College (WLFSC). On August 28 she drew her last breath.
Which cinematic universe is leading?

We are living in a golden age of comic book adaptations with more characters making their way to the big screen than ever before. Between Marvel and DC, there are a lot of fights going down off-screen these days. It begs the question, which studio has done it right so far?
An Ode to the Sundarbans

As construction is about to begin on the Rampal power plant, we are on the eve of losing the Sundarbans to 'development' – development that snatches away our right to a sustainable future.
FASHION

Fashion: hard to define but is acutely synonymous with glamour, flamboyance and vision. It changes with changing times, giving an accurate picture of the world around us.