Private universities can run academic activities online: UGC
The University Grants Commission (UGC) will soon formulate guidelines for private universities to carry out all educational activities online.
It will also take several steps to lessen session jam in public universities after the coronavirus pandemic is over.
These decisions were taken in a videoconference chaired by education minister Dipu Moni on Thursday, three persons who took part in the joint meeting told Prothom Alo.
The videoconference was also attended by the authorities of UGC, public and private universities, they added.
In the first week of April, UGC asked private universities to stop assigning their current students grades through online exams and assessment, and to stop enrolling new students.
But, Association of Private Universities of Bangladesh (APUB) was requesting the UGC to allow them to conduct all educational activities online.
A person who participated in the meeting told Prothom Alo that the private universities are mainly facing problems with the ongoing semester. They will now be able to run the current semester online by following some directives of UGC.
At the end of the meeting, education minister Dipu Moni emphasised most on ensuring academic activities online. She also urged public universities and even the colleges under the National University to consider running academic activities online.
Sheikh Kabir Hossain, president of APUB and one of the participants of the meeting, told Prothom Alo that the education minister said all academic activities would go online.
The procedure would be determined upon discussion with UGC, he added.
Currently, 46 public and 105 private universities are operational in the country.
The shutdown has created a possibility of academic session jam in the universities. Under the circumstances, the government has hinted that educational institutions might remain closed till September next if the coronavirus pandemic continues.
* The report has been rewritten in English by Imam Hossain and Galib Ashraf.