Redesigning curriculum must to prepare students for career 

Job candidates lack practical knowledge and communication, presentation and articulation skills, speakers said on Saturday. 

Having little exposure to practical training during the academic years, 30% of job seekers cannot apply their theoretical knowledge, they said at a webinar on how Bangladeshi education system prepares students for the future, organised  by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh (ICAB).

While presenting the keynote paper, ICAB Vice President Md Abdul Kader Joaddar said the failure to use knowledge in practical work evaded the purpose of education. He also pointed out flaws in curriculum, teaching methods and a lack of quality study materials. 

Moreover, teachers are not well paid, which discourages top graduates to come to the teaching profession, Joaddar said, while adding that the absence of training for teachers was the reason behind the sorry state of the education system in the country.

Overcrowded classrooms, inadequate funding and infrastructure, bureaucracy and improper functioning of educational institutions also have an impact on learners' ability to learn and acquire skills, Joaddar said. 

"We have done pretty well in IT skills development. Around 70% of new graduates possess good technical knowledge. However, IT skills need further improvement in coding and programming.

"Our curriculum needs to be updated and be aligned with the current and future demands." 

The universities need to identify skill gaps and improve teaching methods, Joaddar added.  

Deputy Education Minister Mohibul Hassan Chowdhury, who attended the event as the chief guest,  said the existing academic curriculum in Bangladesh was not encouraging critical thinking. 

The country has not implemented outcome-based education, a blended system that encompasses classroom and laboratory-based teachings, he said, emphasizing the need for introducing an industry-oriented education system.

Md Jashim Uddin, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry, urged the authority to address the flaws in the education system to produce skilled manpower. 

ICAB President Mahmudul Hasan Khusru said there was no alternative to training, research and innovation, adoption of information technology, communication and other soft skills. 

Everyone should have basic coding skills and more and more students should learn programming amid the Fourth Industrial revolution led by digitization, automation and advanced IT knowledge. 

"In order to become a knowledge-based society, we have to achieve some features encompassing basic pillars as structural and human capital," he said, adding that structural capital meant infrastructure and governance, while human capital would be a skilled, trained, educated and productive population.