NEWS about acute shortage of classrooms and laboratory facilities in different departments of the Jahangirnagar University (JU) made headline of a national English daily on Thursday leaving one to wonder about the development priority in this public university. It detailed out how classrooms shortage is regularly forcing the varsity authorities to suspend classes and this in turn is delaying course completion resulting into session jam. It quoted the condition of the Department of Environmental Science, established in 1999 and yet surprisingly it has only two classrooms and a lab so far to meet requirement of six batches of students of the department. Most other departments are also having one or two classrooms each, which are totally inadequate. The university teachers are reported to have said they are forced to suspend classes of all batches during the tutorial, mid-term and semester final exams of one batch or another thus disrupting regular academic schedules.
The Department of Environment has procured books worth Tk 10 lakh and lab equipment at the cost of several crores taka in recent past but none of those resources could be properly used for lack of space. The syndicate had decided to shift some classes of the department at some other buildings as per the report but it also remained unattended. There is no follow up of the decision for reasons not clearly spelled out when teachers are found busy in factional quarrels and political goals to be achieved for one group against the other. The varsity remained shut for months two years back in a fight as to who becomes Vice-Chancellor and who vacates. The session jam this time is over six months.
What we understand from JU’s current predicaments is that the varsity authorities are not giving proper attention to the academic needs of the students neglecting the development of necessary classrooms and lab facilities. It needs long term planning but as the situation suggests, such planning may be missing while they are mindlessly using funds for enhancing pay and other benefits for teachers and politically vested interest quarters within the campus. It is really difficult to understand how the varsity can operate without having built enough classrooms and lab facilities, which are very basic necessity of students and what the varsity stand for in the first place.
We must say the university regulatory body must look into where the failure lies and how quickly it may be overcome. The government is paying taxpayers money and there must be accountability of every pie while the money must go on priority basis to enhancing teaching facilities and the quality of education.
The Department of Environment has procured books worth Tk 10 lakh and lab equipment at the cost of several crores taka in recent past but none of those resources could be properly used for lack of space. The syndicate had decided to shift some classes of the department at some other buildings as per the report but it also remained unattended. There is no follow up of the decision for reasons not clearly spelled out when teachers are found busy in factional quarrels and political goals to be achieved for one group against the other. The varsity remained shut for months two years back in a fight as to who becomes Vice-Chancellor and who vacates. The session jam this time is over six months.
What we understand from JU’s current predicaments is that the varsity authorities are not giving proper attention to the academic needs of the students neglecting the development of necessary classrooms and lab facilities. It needs long term planning but as the situation suggests, such planning may be missing while they are mindlessly using funds for enhancing pay and other benefits for teachers and politically vested interest quarters within the campus. It is really difficult to understand how the varsity can operate without having built enough classrooms and lab facilities, which are very basic necessity of students and what the varsity stand for in the first place.
We must say the university regulatory body must look into where the failure lies and how quickly it may be overcome. The government is paying taxpayers money and there must be accountability of every pie while the money must go on priority basis to enhancing teaching facilities and the quality of education.
