Experts at an international education conference yesterday stressed the need to set global teaching standards, focusing on ethics and values as an essential part of school curricula.

University of Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) in association with the British Council hosted the daylong conference at a city hotel, attended by principals, senior teachers, academics and representatives from CIE and the British Council.

Inaugurating the conference, CIE Chief Executive Ann Puntis called for forging stronger links between global education providers, such as CIE, and their local partners in order to develop a global standard of education.

"The conference theme, 'Global Best Practice', reflects our ambition to develop successful students by equipping teachers with the tools to provide the best educational experience," she said.

CIE is the biggest provider of international examinations around the world.

British High Commissioner Anwar Choudhury said that without English language skills, students in Bangladesh risk being 'blind and deaf' in the global knowledge base.

Although the cyber knowledge base would become increasingly multi-lingual, resources in Bangla or Chinese languages would never match that in English, he said.

Identifying access to and quality of education as the big 'issues', he said that when teachers do not provide quality education, they cheat students out of their lives.

Scholastica Chairperson

Yasmeen Murshed said Bangladeshi educators cannot be swayed by 'only' global trends but should stay attuned to, and engaged with, the social, moral and cultural values of Bangladesh.

She stressed the need for educators to inculcate students with the values necessary for a lifelong education by focusing on ethics of equity and inclusion, human security, environmental consciousness and poverty alleviation.

Yasmeen Murshed, also a former adviser to the caretaker government, said teachers in Bangladesh should inform and engage students with knowledge of the region's historical roots, uniqueness of the country, political dynamics across borders and economic history, especially about the conditions of

economic development here.

Speaking on the 'Educational challenges in the 21st century', Mahfuz Anam, editor and publisher of The Daily Star, said that ethics are an essential component of education.

"A person devoid of ethics is devoid of education," he said, adding that teachers should nurture intellect and vigour, not prejudice, to ensure that a student's overall education is framed and upheld by ethics.

He also said that it is the teachers' job to motivate and inspire students with enthusiasm for education to promote innovation and creativity.

Dr Monzoor Ahmed, director of Brac University's Institute of Educational Development, spoke on 'Professional development for teachers'.