Universities set to reopen

The entrance exam to Dhaka University the exam was held in a peaceful manner, maintaining health rules on October 2. The admission test was held after a one-year delay forced by the coronavirus pandemic. To be on the safe side for the first in history the exam was held outside Dhaka in a bid to avoid Covid-19 infection. The decision to hold the exam was indeed a step in the right direction. Now the teachers, students and the parents are keenly awaiting the resumption of academic activities which have been suspended since March 2021.

We are all aware of the steps taken by the authorities to tackle the pandemic. "Lockdowns" were imposed at regular intervals. There were announcements of several stimulus packages and the moderate to massive vaccination drives marked the last 19 months. What remained constant for as many as 543 days during this period was the closure of educational institutions. Everything else continued as if the pandemic does not exist, or normalcy has returned after brief disruptions. But the doors of educational institutions remained stubbornly locked. However thankfully the schools and colleges are open now and the results so far has been quite positive.

Dhaka University is going to start its academic activities from October 5. We believe that all universities should start in-person classes. As a large number of university teachers and students have either been fully vaccinated or will get both doses of Covid-19 vaccine soon. Of course, there have been attempts to shift to online learning during the prolonged shutdown. However, the huge digital divide and inadequate planning and inconsistent directives from the authorities concerned did not lead to desired results. The failure was not unexpected in a country where mobile internet speed is very poor. Bangladesh is one of the five countries on the bottom of the global list when it comes to mobile internet speed. The UNESCO has termed the learning loss caused by the pandemic an unfolding "generational catastrophe". We fully accept the urgency of holding exams and resuming classes as soon as possible. We obviously stress the importance of protecting our students while helping them to recover from learning losses. We hope that Covid-19 health protocols, and all other relevant information, will be properly communicated to the students—since so far, the frequent disruptions in learning have put a great deal of stress on them. 

Experiences from countries around the world where educational institutes have reopened suggest that with adequate mitigation strategies, schools, colleges and universities pose low risk for disease transmission for students, teachers, and communities. Available evidence suggests that students are both less likely to get Covid-19 and less likely to transmit the disease to others. Transmission within educational institutes has been low. While it is not possible to completely eliminate the risk of disease transmission in any institute, evidence from reopened schools indicates that simple mitigation measures like wearing masks, social distancing, and washing hands frequently are effective in substantially reducing transmission to students and teachers. Medical centres of the universities can play a vital role in controlling corona transmission. They should introduce a community-based prevention practice and case identification.  Prolonged reliance on virtual learning can disrupt a student’s educational and social development and can have serious longer-term economic repercussions

There has been a pretty strong reaction by students against internet-based classes over the last few months. These factors make in-person opening of universities more desirable. Distance learning is particularly ineffective in universities. Some disciplines need laboratory work and cannot have their courses online. Research shows that the best learning occurs with students physically present in the classroom. The richness of in-person discussion, debate, criticism and feedback found in classrooms just cannot be replicated online.  University education is not simply about gathering knowledge it is also (perhaps even more so) about exploring knowledge. And for that to happen physical interaction among teachers and students is absolutely essential. Online learning can at best be a temporary measure.  Universities are places where the future leaders of the country are groomed. We hope these higher seats of learning remain open and vibrant.