RAJSHAHI. May 4: Students of Business Studies Faculty in Rajshahi University have been facing a bleak future.
They have been confined in a complex net of session-jam due to alleged irresponsibility of the teachers.
Session jam in the Faculty of Business Studies is getting lengthy every year when it is remarkably decreasing in other faculties.
The complex condiUon has been created after introduction of BBA and MBA courses in all the four departments of the faculty — Accounting, Finance and Banking. Marketing and Management in 1996-97 academic year.
A complete one year was lost to begin the courses. The old B Com (Honours) and M Com courses were withdrawn as soon as the decision of introducing BBA and MBA courses were taken, but the faculty teachers took about one year's time to prepare an ordinance and syllabus. The students had to wait idle for one year. Thus session-Jam of one year had been created Just at the very beginning of the courses.
Some students, who got admitted into first year BBA classes in the departments of the faculty in the academic year of 1996-97. are yet to get their results of the first year examinations. Condition of the MBA courses is more miserable.
Students of Marketing Department of 1991-92 acp-denjic year completed their B Corti (Honours) course in 1996 and others of -Finance and Banking. Accounting and Management Departments of the same academic year had completed their B COm (Honours) course in 1997. All they had to wait idle for six months to one year to get admission into MBA class.
According to RU sources, the ordinance promulgated by the faculty has fixed the first 15
weeks' for class and the last three weeks for examinations. But. in practice, the departments are not following the schedule.
As per the ordinance, results of the examinations should be published within 28 days after completion of the examinations. as well as classes of the next sessions should start immediately. None of the four departments follow the rules.
Accounting and Finance and Banking departments started classes of the first year first semester in July. 1998 after losing more than a year and completed the examination in March, 1999, but the results are yet to be published.
Marketing Department began the classes in March. 1998^ and held examinations >n January. 1999 but could-'not publish the results till now.
The Management Department started the classes in July, 1998, but could have not yet hold the examination.
All the students of the departments have been sitting idle for months together waiting to get their results and start classes of the second semester.
Some students, when contacted, commented that the teachers were solely responsible for the miserable deadlock situation in the faculty. "Most teachers are more interested in other activities like politics rather than taking classes", said an angry student. A senior Teacher said that spme tea^hera , do hot care fdr any rule dr Custom. They do not take class and see examination sheets day' after day. but they are not accountable to any body as they belong to any of the leading political groups of teachers," he said on condition of anonymity. This carelessness attitude of powerful teachers ultimately makes others, even the sincere ones to be inactive and irresponsible, he deplored.
A semester of six months term takes more than a year to be completed.’As a consequence the sessions jams every year.
Moreover, the students are also suffering for lack of proper rules on giving marks.
More than 90 per cent students get Grade-C (51-60% marks), Grade-D (41-50%) and Grade-F (0-40%). This occurs mainly for lack of unique system of giving marks and inexperiences of the teachers.
Most teachers adjudge the students as per the standards of . Honours and Masters curses to which they are accustomed to. The teachers do not care about it even after repeated requests of the students to follow the systems and standards of Dhaka University or IBA. Dhaka to give marks, some students alleged.
The students who get Grades C. D or F need to appear in the grade development examinations. As a result, number of grade development examinees is increasing every year making the session jam more complicated. A grade development examinee has to wait for one year as he is only allowed to appear in the examination of the same semester of the next academic year. As a result, he loses a year. There is no provision of a supplementary examination in the Ordinance of the faculty.
But. the students said. BUET, IBA. BIT and other institutions having semester system, have (k$m .rules of supplementary examinations for grade-development to .avoid session jam and save the students' academic year.
Most students and teachers termed the Ordinance of the Business Studies Faculty incomplete and inadequate to fulfill the desired purposes. The most painful matter is that the ordinance is not followed in practice. As a result the students suffer most.