Center for ‘Excellence in Teaching and Learning’ at ULAB

A view of the launching ceremony of Center for 'Excellence in Teaching and Learning' at ULAB in the city recently.
A view of the launching ceremony of Center for 'Excellence in Teaching and Learning' at ULAB in the city recently.
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Campus Report :
The University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB) has joined the small but growing league of universities who can boast having a center dedicated to teaching and learning. The idea of having centers for teaching is quite novel in Bangladesh. However this is a widely accepted way to go forward in enhancing teaching practices in many North American institutions. The celebration of the birth of its newest, certainly not the last center, is also a parting gift by Prof Brian Shoesmith, Dean of Academic Development to ULAB who had been instrumental in getting it off the ground. It should be mentioned that a Quality Cell had been launched earlier in October as part of ULAB’s commitment to ensuring quality education.  
The event was inaugurated by Imran Rahman, Vice Chancellor (Acting) of ULAB with Prof Mesbahuddin Ahmed, Head of the Quality Assurance Unit of the University Grants Commission and Prof Md. Golam Samdani Fakir, VC of Green University present as special guests. Jim Scarth, the Deputy Head of British Council Dhaka, spoke as the chief guest. Brian Shoesmith, ULAB Provost and Dean of Academic Development, in his farewell speech at the Center, reflected on the road ahead in the challenging path to quality assurance in teaching practice. Mark Goodwin, Associate Prof. at Leicester University Learning Institute in UK also joined in through skype to congratulate the new Director, Dr Shakib Ahsan and hoped to share lessons learned both in standardizing a teaching evaluation system and developing courses for certification.
Prof Imran Rahman Acting VC of ULAB stressed on the role of the VCs of other universities who have an opportunity to seize by joining forces to push for a standard practice of quality teaching that can leave its mark in the higher education landscape in Bangladesh.
The chief guest reiterated British Council’s role in reaching out and taking the conversation further.
With the launching of another CETL, he hoped that the CETL initiative undertaken at British Council made another progress. Prof Md. Golam Samdani Fakir and Prof. Mesbahuddin Ahmed, special guests at the function spoke briefly about their experiences in working with each other and with ULAB in the past. They hoped to see more universities joining the caravan of CETL, creating a momentum for the need to practice quality teaching in Bangladesh. They applauded the strides ULAB was able to make in a very short time and wished it continued success.
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