The importance of learning English in Bangladesh
Right from the moment you step out of the Hazrat Shahjalal International airport in Dhaka, you notice that knowing Bangla is essential to your survival. You do manage to clear immigration, to exchange your currency and obtain sufficient Takas, even take a Bangladeshi SIM card for your mobile phone and book a cab on the Uber-app. So far so good! But then the problems multiply. You cannot converse with the cab driver, you cannot even read the number plate on the car because the numbers and alphabets are inscribed in Bengali, you cannot take the assistance of several friendly smiling locals who really do want to help out but can't with their limited knowledge of English. And all this in the centre of Bangladesh's proud capital!
All sign boards along the way are in Bangla, despite which with great difficulty you do manage to reach your hotel in the Gulshan-2 area, only to find friendly smiling Bangladeshis with whom you need to struggle to communicate. The doorman, the waiters, the concierge are very polite and friendly but you need to know Bangla to understand what they are trying to tell you!
Also when you go sight-seeing to the Suhrawardy Udyan and you want to know where the Pakistani Instrument of Surrender was signed, nobody can tell you that. Several information boards do exist, only all of them are in Bangla! The residents are very helpful, they even accompany you, but you cannot communicate with them for they speak only Bangla!
The whole world knows that language plays an extremely important role in the hearts and minds of Bangladeshis. It was the struggle for Bangla that gave rise to nascent Bangla nationalism from where arose the free nation of Bangladesh! Students had laid down their lives in civic unrest, spiralling violence, amidst death and destruction. Testimony to Bangladesh's struggle for independence is the national monument, the Shaheed Minar, that poignantly stands in the Dhaka University campus paying tribute to all those who made the supreme sacrifice for the language movement, which along with other factors led to the Liberation War, which concluded with the end of Pakistan in East Bengal.
But despite carrying such history why impose self-inflicted wounds? Learning the English language doesn't mean avoiding or disrespecting Bangla. It is universally acknowledged that English is the lingua franca of the world. English proficiency is the key to ensuring access to education, business and technology. In fact the more than 150 public and private universities in Bangladesh do use English as the medium of instruction at the tertiary level.
This is the starting point of the problem for most students who have completed their primary and secondary education in Bangla medium and find themselves in an alien environment at the beginning of their university life. Most textbooks, in schools and colleges, are translated into Bangla to promote the national language and to uphold the glory of the language.
It is true that while education is in the Bangla medium, students are required to read English for about 12 years, for though it is a foreign language, it is a compulsory subject at the school and college levels. Even the applicants for the Civil Service Examinations are tested for their English knowledge. But the level of competency in all spheres is debatable. To achieve proficiency one must have familiarity with all four processes—reading, writing, speaking and listening. Regrettably, the education system where English is concerned stresses on reading and writing. The repercussions are already visible—when the youngsters start applying for jobs the lack of English skills causes umpteen disappointments.
It was not always so. As a legacy of the British rule, English was once the official language of British India which included present day Bangladesh. Only the use of the language by government, semi-government, private organisations, academics, companies, interpersonal, commercial, or official communication, should have been formalised in Bangladesh through suitable constitutional provisions.
After all, English is the currency through which knowledge is traded these days. Good English will directly link Bangladeshis with the world of knowledge enabling youngsters to imbibe and contribute to society. Citizens will become more attractive to international and domestic corporations besides adding value to tech-savvy workers. It is a fact that today's marvels, the personal computer, Internet, smartphone, Google, Facebook, Twitter have been pioneered by the English-speaking world! English is the conduit through which higher science and technology education, critical to a nation's development flows, which Bangladesh should be taking advantage off.
The reservoir of scientific and technical knowledge that has been filled primarily by English language technical papers should make every developing nation, including Bangladesh, encourage its use. After all, when the Japanese, the Chinese and the Russians recognise the urgency for learning English, why can't the Bangladeshis?
Bangladesh has ample foresighted leaders with a strategic vision, they should not only look out for short time political gains and push for raw patriotism, sacrificing the long-term interests of the nation. Learning English is not a sign of weakness or lack of patriotism. It is the need of the hour to create an atmosphere for youngsters to learn English easily and to prepare them for the highly-competitive international market. Insisting on a Bangladesh with bilingual roots will do wonders for the country's education and development. Numerous tourists and visitors to Bangladesh, will then be delighted to have smiling hospitable Bangladeshis converse with them in fluent immaculate English!
Priyan R Naik is a Bengaluru based freelance journalist whose articles often appear in the Deccan Herald, India's leading newspaper. He was in Dhaka recently on a short visit.
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