Extra curricular activities for future development

Dr. Forqan Uddin Ahmed :
Extracurricular activities (ECAs) can denote anything we do out of our regular education activities. We are not awarded school credits for such activities. So debate, writing, making graphic design, painting, singing, playing sports, researching, summer programs, volunteering, and sewing costumes for cats are all include in ECAs. And now, more than ever, we can pursue as many or as few as we like. The ECA scene in Bangladesh has changed drastically over the past few years, and with it, our feelings towards them. Whereas, once upon a time, the list of activities available to us was much shorter and access to it was limited to only those who could participate, a surge in accessibility and increase in discovery has changed the face of extracurricular. Through the power of technology, we can now do much more from the comfort of your home than we could, say, 15 years ago. YouTube tutorials are available for free on any skill, but if we want a more hands-on experience and exposure to it outside our bedroom, we can most certainly hire a tutor or take classes.
ECAs are integral to the journey that proves that an unconventional career path is more than okay; it’s also the most risk-free way of finding out what you enjoy. But even if one chooses to pursue a conventional career path, the skills they learn will be crucial to their success. The best place to start your ECA journey would be at school, so that when we eventually start applying for jobs, we have something to show for our skills. Somehow, this message gets lost in translation and most students end up seeing ECAs as merely a method to boost their resumes. As university applications and job prospects see more and more competition, students fight tooth and nail to stand out because they believe ECAs are the way to do so. Instead of finding and focusing on the activity that they are most passionate about, they run after a dozen activities they care less about and do not really want to work on.
In the context of Bangladesh, extracurricular activities have widely been ignored in most of the educational institutions from primary to the tertiary level except there are few hopeful signs in the renowned English medium schools. And this absence of such activities is the prime obstacle in acquiring total benefits from the academic institutions. Schools should concern with students’ all-round development by integrating both academic and social aspects outside the subjects of exam schedule, somehow more attention has been given to the student’s performance from the beginning of the development of school system. In recent times, the quality of education in Bangladesh has become a popular topic to discuss or debate on talk-shows and in social media. But, many of the guests in talk-shows forget that the quality of education depends on the proper integration of both the curricular and extracurricular activities provided by the institution in a school system. It’s worth mentioning that, the existing institutional and social ignorance towards extracurricular activities won’t ensure the quality citizen building which is the precondition in establishing knowledge based and economically developed society.
What are the roles of a modern school in the 21st century? Is it only to provide certificates through typical teaching-learning activities or to meet the fast changing skills needs of a knowledge based economy? If the answer is to meet the skills then needs another question begs an answer, how much can curriculum solely develop such skills and qualities? Extracurricular activities, a series of activities related to the school system, which provide students the opportunities to acquire the above mentioned skills through actual experiences. It enables the students to identify and utilize their latent talent and potentials in real world situation. Moreover, participation in activities outside the classroom assists students in securing social, personal and intellectual development.
Many universities allow their students to participate in national and international conferences and events. We gain perspective of a different subject matter and learn from peers from different countries and universities. The best part is we could be studying accounting but could be interested in humanitarian affairs or sustainability or leadership skills and can attend any event/conference on these topics. This widens our horizons and gives usa great opportunity to enhance our inner quality. This also helps a student develop their personality. As mentioned, the fact that we could attend a conference on any topic besides the one which you actually study, the leadership skills, the hobby or sports clubs youth or students may join, all of these activities help groom their personality and make them ready to face the world and its challenges which come once they are done with the studies. The extracurricular activities add to the overall development of an individual and even though it might not be out rightly obvious, they shape an individual and groom the person. This can be in the form of increased self-esteem, motivation to perform better in every sphere; including education and better organization and preparation.
In the 21st Century, the world is changing fast. The conventional education curriculum, which was developed in the early 20th Century, has to pave the way to a new kind of education and learning. In this regard co-curricular activities fuel learning by stimulating creative thought, improving social and organizational skills, developing interests and talents, and offering the chance to switch off and do something really enjoy. Schools, colleges, universities and mostly any educational institution have activities like debates, discussions and even clubs organizing more activities. Students who take part in these activities get a break from studies and it adds to their development because they might be chairing an event, hosting some show or playing some sports. All of these activities would develop the leadership skills in the individuals because at times they are nominated to lead a team and in some instances, they emerge as a leader automatically while the activity is carried on. These skills cannot be developed without the extracurricular activities being part of the curriculum and academia.
How far the extracurricular activities have achieved? Is it in the upward trend? In a developing country like ours, it is facing a lot of challenges. Though it plays a significant role and help developing the mindset, manners and etiquettes of students, but our institutions are not in a position to conduct these activities in a smooth way. It is very slow in our academic Arena, somewhere it is almost absent. People are not so eager; teacher and the students remain busy with teaching and learning exclusively. Extracurricular activities bring out dynamic leadership and education gets its completion by it. Moreover, it protects our society from many evils. Finally, we can obviously say that education and extracurricular activities are complements to each other.

(The writer is former Deputy Director General, Bangladesh Ansar and VDP).