Education experts have urged the government not to concede to students' demands for automatic passes and result re-evaluations, terming such demands illogical, unacceptable, and with far-reaching consequences.

They alleged that the current unrest is a result of the government's hasty decision to cancel the previously postponed HSC exams in response to the "unreasonable" demands of the students in August.

Results of the HSC and equivalent exams were published on October 15. Six tests were postponed due to the anti-discrimination students' movement in July and were ultimately canceled later.

"The demand to cancel the exams was never a logical one, and the government's lack of foresight has resulted in this situation. Students now believe they can demand and receive whatever they want, which is dangerous."

— Prof Mojibur Rahman faculty member, Institute of Education and Research, Dhaka University

The announced results eventually relied partly on the students' previous SSC exam performances through subject mapping.

However, right after the results were published, students staged demonstrations at their respective education boards, including in Chattogram, Jashore, Mymensingh and Dinajpur, demanding that their results be re-evaluated. 

On October 20, protesters stormed the Dhaka Education Board and confined around 30 officials, including the chairman, for over eight hours, demanding automatic passes.

Speaking to The Daily Star, Prof Siddiqur Rahman, former director of the Dhaka University's Institute of Education and Research, said such demands and protests are unfortunate.

He added that those who pass without sitting for exams will eventually lack the competence needed to contribute to the nation.

"And conceding to such demands could set a dangerous precedent, encouraging future students to seek similar concessions, which would undermine the country's future… There's no point in destroying a nation by accepting these foolish, illogical and self-destructive demands.

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"The government had already made a mistake by canceling the remaining HSC exams after August 5. That decision was also illogical and damaging for the country, the students, and the education system."

Prof Siddiqur also criticised the ousted government's decisions during the Covid-19 pandemic -- implementing short syllabuses and granting automatic promotions, saying these actions had created gaps in learning and will have long-term effects.

"Automatic passes cannot be a solution during every crisis."

He called on the interim government to remain steadfast and warned that continued leniency would lead to further unrest.

"If the government is making decisions based on political or reputational concerns, it'll only lead to negative outcomes."

Prof Mojibur Rahman, faculty member of DU's Institute of Education and Research, blamed the government's failure to make timely decisions for the current situation.

Soon after the fall of the Hasina-led government on August 5, the interim government on August 15 announced that the postponed HSC exams would be held on September 11.

Prof Mojibur said that timing (to hold the exams) was not appropriate as the nation was still reeling from the events centring the mass uprising.

"Meanwhile, the country was also facing floods."

He added that the exams could have been rescheduled through consultations with relevant stakeholders.

"The demand to cancel the exams was never a logical one, and the government's lack of foresight has resulted in this situation. Students now believe they can demand and receive whatever they want, which is dangerous.

"The formation of a strong education commission is needed for the alignment and coordination within the education system – primary, secondary, and higher secondary. If we can do that, then we can move towards systemic reforms through consultations with stakeholders.

Prof Tapan Kumar Sarkar, chief of the Inter-Education Board Coordination Committee and chairman of the Dhaka Education Board, has too termed the students' demands "unreasonable".

On Monday, he submitted a letter to Siddique Zobair, secretary to the Secondary and Higher Education Division of the education ministry, asking to be withdrawn from his post. Asked why, he said, "It's wiser to resign than to concede to their [students'] demands."

His request, however, has not yet been met.

Contacted yesterday, Prof Tapan, however, said the government remains firm on the recently published results and has no plans to make changes despite the protests.

On the other hand, a top official of the education ministry last night said they were considering sending the students' demands to the advisory council to seek their opinion in this regard.

Before the results were published, Education Adviser Wahiduddin Mahmud on October 14 said that granting automatic passes to all HSC candidates would undermine the efforts of the majority of the students, who worked hard to pass the exams.

The HSC exams this year, which began on June 30, were initially scheduled to conclude on August 21.

As the quota reform protests intensified and turned deadly in July, the previous government gradually started postponing the exams from July 16 onwards, after only seven tests had been held. In Sylhet, only three tests were held as the region was facing severe floods at the time.

Following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government on August 5, the interim government rescheduled the remaining exams for September 11.

However, on August 20, a group of HSC candidates broke into the Secretariat in Dhaka and locked the gates, demanding the cancellation of the remaining exams.