The government, after a discussion with the Qawmi madrasa board, is set to include the history of the 1971 Liberation War in the Qawmi madrasa curriculum to instill in the students the spirit of the war and give them a clear idea of ethics and human rights.
According to the education ministry, a course for the Qawmi students will soon begin similar to the ‘Bangladesh and Global Studies’ that have been included in the English medium curriculum.
“Initiatives have been undertaken to give the students a clear idea about the spirit of the Liberation War, ethics and human rights,” said Secondary and Higher Education Division Additional Secretary Jabed Ahmed.
He added that the ministry has come to the decision to formulate a common course that will be designed by the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB).
NTCB Chairman Narayan Chandra Saha said that a seminar related to the matter has already been held and the education experts have also given their opinions. “We’ll start with the course design after an order from the top level of the government.”
Sources at NTCB said that the education experts have emphasized on teacher’s training for the course to deliver desired outcomes. They said that along with designing the course the training must start now so that the teachers can have a clear concept of the ideas as well.
The Qawmi madrasas operate with their own curriculum without any government farcicalities. However, the government has undertaken the initiative so that the students can develop into proper citizens.
Al Hayatul Uliya Lil Jamiyatul Islamia member Mowlana Musleh Uddin Raju said that they haven’t had any discussion related to the matter and neither have they received a letter to include the history of the Liberation War in the syllabus.
Saying that the inclusion is a positive one, another member Mowlana Fariduddin Masud said that although he isn’t aware of any recent discussions, the government had spoken about the matter a long time ago.
In 2013, after media reports surfaced saying that Qawmi madrasa syllabus don’t include the history of the 1971 Liberation War, Bangladesh Qawmi Madrasa Board Secretary General Mowlana Abdul Jabbar took initiatives to amend it in 2015. However, several reports of Bangla Tribune pointed out the flaws in the amendments.