Our education sector, from top to bottom, has begged to be revamped for the last decade or so, and with good reason.
From the quality of education being provided to study materials, the entire sector remains riddled with flaws which require authorities and experts to reimagine how the youth are learning, and the skill-set that they are inheriting from their schools.
But nothing epitomizes the sector’s shortcomings more than exam paper leaks, which further delegitimizes the entire system.
Case in point: Around 18,000 students who passed the controversial “Gha” unit entrance exams in Dhaka university will have to re-sit for the exam due to the papers being leaked prior to it. While the students are partly to blame for making use of the leaked questions, the onus lies squarely on the education administration.
While the government has done much to combat these leaks over the last year, it seems that corrupt educational practices are still prevalent, and it is always the students who end up suffering for it, through inconveniences such as re-sitting for exams in the short term, and becoming ill-prepared in joining the workforce in the long term.
This is a disappointing turn of events which further showcases to what extent corruption in the education sector has spread, and that it is not confined to just the SSC and HSC exams. The fact that similar leaks took place last year, and from the same unit, suggests that this is a trend, not a one-off incident that can be swept under the rug.
While we appreciate the university authorities for investigating the matter and for re-taking the Gha unit exams, it is not a solution.
Such leaks taking place at the country’s oldest and most renowned education institution does not bode well, and emphasizes the need for authorities to reconsider their plan of action regarding the education sector in its entirety.
