Zafar Iqbal, Hasina Khan acknowledge blunders in science textbook

The editor and writer of the seven grade science textbook under the fresh curriculum acknowledged the allegation of incorporating several paragraphs into the book directly from the national geographic education site through translation.  

The editor and writer of the textbook, professor Zafar Iqbal and professor Hasina Khan, issued a joint statement on Tuesday, expressing their disappointment.

In the press statement, Zafar Iqbal and Hasina Khan said, "Although we were not responsible for writing those parts [that were copied from the national geographic education], we are acknowledging these mistakes as editors."   

"We will correct these mistakes in the next edition."

They said the science textbooks for seventh and eighth graders under the new curriculum in 2023 were prepared and handed over to the students across the country. An article published at Prothom Alo online over the mistakes in seventh grader's science textbook has caught their attention. 

"According to the article, the book contains some contents that are completely copied from the national geographic education site via translation. We found the veracity of the allegation after comparing the paragraphs between the site and the textbook," they lamented.  

In the statement, they said, "Many writers are involved in the process of publishing a textbook. We expect responsible behaviour from those writers when preparing national textbooks. But when we find the veracity of such an allegation, it becomes a matter of disappointment for our team. Although we were not responsible for writing those parts [that were carbon-copied from the national geographic education], we are acknowledging these mistakes as editors."       

The release says the book has been prepared on a trial basis and there is enough scope to edit the book from the upcoming academic year. So, except for these allegations, any logical opinion over the text books would be granted with utmost importance and the changes would be made accordingly.    

Professor Hasina Khan, Mohammad Mizanur Rahman Khan, Mushtaq Ibn Ayub and Roni Basak were the writers of this text with professor Zafar Iqbal as the editor.