DHAKA: Litterateur Imdadul Haq Milon, also editor of country’s one of the leading Bengali daily Kaler Kantho, said people of the country became shocked at the results of Dhaka University admission tests this time.

The famous novelist made the remark while addressing a roundtable at EWMGL Conference Room of East West Media Centre at Bashundhara Residential Area in the city on Saturday.

English daily the Daily Sun organized the discussion tilted “Increase in pass rate: Rise or fall in quality of education?”

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid attended as chief guest with Daily Sun editor Amir Hossain in the chair.

Milon said, “The pass rate has been increased widely, but how much the quality of education has been increased is the matter of discussion.”

People have been astounded seeing the admission test of DU; only two students have got the admission chances at the university’s English department, he added.

Addressing the function, widely-circulated Bangla daily Bangladesh Pratidin editor Naeem Nizam said, we face problems everyday to give appointment, job seekers can not translate from English properly.

After being passed from the public universities, they cannot translate from English correctly, he added.

Till now, Madrasa education is not able to maintain pace with the mainstream education.

No flags were hosted at the madrasahes. Change is necessary in Qawmi madrasah education. If changes to the madrasah educations are not made beside the mainstream education we have to fall in challenges in future.

Professor Wahiduzzaman of Institute of Education and Research at DU told the audience that increase of pass rate is obviously a positive side, but we have to consider also whether the quality of education has been increased or not.

Essayist-poet professor Hayat Mamud of Jahangirnagar University commented, quality of education at our schools is very bad.

We have to pay proper attention no language that is a matter of continuous learning.

BDST: 1520 HRS, SEP 27, 2014