Staff Reporter :
The new academic year began on Wednesday on January 1. Following recent political changes, the new curriculum has been suspended, and textbooks based on the 2012 curriculum are being provided to students this year.
The National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) has revised 441 textbooks with the help of 41 experts.
Numerous topics have been added or removed. Several essays, articles, novels, poems, and other contents have been excluded. Additionally, new topics, including the July Student Uprising, have been incorporated.
A new chapter titled “Our Four Leaders” has been added to the “Bangladesh and Global Studies” textbook for Class 3 in the new academic year. The four leaders are Sher-e-Bangla A. K. Fazlul Huq, Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani, Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. This chapter presents brief biographies of each leader along with their photographs. Last year, the “Our Father of the Nation” chapter was included in the Class 3 “Bangladesh and Global Studies” book, but it is not present in this year’s edition.
Regarding the textbook changes, NCTB Chairman Professor A. K. M. Riazul Hasan stated on Monday that topics related to the July Revolution have been added to Bengali and English books this year. He mentioned that historical figures other than those associated with the Liberation War were previously overlooked. This year, they have been given importance, and excessive glorification has been avoided.
How Independence is Portrayed in the Textbooks
The declaration of independence has been presented in a new way in the updated textbooks. In the Class 5 book, under the chapter “Genocide by Pakistani Forces,” it is stated:
“The Pakistani military named their attack ‘Operation Searchlight.’ On that night, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was arrested. On March 26, Major Ziaur Rahman declared Bangladesh’s independence from the Kalurghat radio station in Chittagong.
On March 27, he again declared independence on behalf of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Thus began the Liberation W
The declaration of independence is also included in the Class 4 “Bangladesh and Global Studies” textbook. This book contains both the photo of Bangabandhu’s March 7 speech and an image of Major Ziaur Rahman announcing independence.
Errors in Printed Books Corrected Online
In the Class 5 “My Bengali Book,” the essay “We Will Not Forget You” remembers martyrs from various periods, from Mir Nisar Ali Titumir’s resistance against the British about 200 years ago to the student uprising in July this year.
The essay also includes photographs of martyrs Abu Saeed and Mir Mahfuzur Rahman Mugdha from the July student uprising. However, a printing error included the name “Nahian” instead of “Nafisa” for one of the martyrs. This mistake was corrected in the online version of the textbook available on the NCTB website.
Student Uprising Graffiti in Textbooks
This year, graffiti from the student uprising has been added to the free textbooks. The back cover no longer features a photo and quote of the ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. However, like before, inspirational messages remain on the back pages. For instance, the back page of the Class 1 Bengali book (“My Bengali Book”) features graffiti from the student uprising alongside the timeless advice: “Respect your elders.”
