DPS STS (Delhi Public) School Dhaka inaugurated the sixth edition of its International Model United Nations (IMUN) conference titled DPSIMUN VI at DPS STS Dhaka senior campus, Uttara in the capital on Thgursday.  The 4-day conference is expected to witness the participation of 700 foreign and local delegates from over 65 schools, including Cibola High School (USA), Yew Chung International School of Shanghai (China), Scholastica, Sunbeams, Aga Khan, Sir John Wilson, Sunnydale, St Joseph, Viqarunnisa Noon School, Holy Cross and many more.  The sixth edition of DPSIMUN this year received around 2,000 registrations. In this MUN conference, delegates will attend the conference to discuss pressing international issues and defend their positions passionately.  The students will have the opportunity to learn ways to negotiate with others and collaborate with like-minded people, according to the DPSIMUN organisers. Earlier, they worked together on policy proposals and detailed programs to solve critical global problems ranging from drone technology to territorial sovereignty to participate in the conference. The conference shall work as a platform to create the best opportunities for delegates to build friendships and make connections with diverse types of people, the organisers informed the media.   International standard conferences will also take place during the event, with accreditation from MYMUN. This is also expected to be engaging and informative, as acclaimed professionals will conduct the conference to hone the skills and enhance the knowledge of the delegates. Participants, who will attend the International standard conferences, will gain experience that will eventually have a positive impact on their public speaking opportunities and university applications.  The conference is featuring 15 special committees, including United Nations Children’s Fund, World Health Organization, United Nations Women, United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, North Atlantic Treaty Organizations, International Press Conference, United States National Security Council, Jatiya Sangshad, and Special Political and Decolonization.  On Day 2, ‘Aloy Akash Mela’ will showcase Bangladesh’s diversity and cultural beauty and will witness the participation of local bands such as Ograjjo and Auvro.  Popular band Nemesis will perform on Day 3, while DJ Autul will rock the Gala Night for the delegates.   DPS STS Principal Dr Shivananda CS delivered his welcome remarks at the beginning of the 4-day MUN. Fahmida Sultana, Media and Communication Officer, Resident Coordinator’s Office Dhaka, United Nations; Reshma Khan Zaman, Operations Manager, United Nations Women; and Manas Singh, Chief Executive Officer, STS Group, delivered their remarks during the conference.  Vignesh Khajuria, Secretary-General, DPS International Model United Nations 2023, has conducted the ceremony’s opening and will also deliver the closing speech. On the last day, the delegates will receive awards for their commendable efforts.  DPSIMUN will continue till March 12 at DPS STS Dhaka senior campus.

The Canadian International School Bangladesh (CISB) on Monday unveiled the pre-university studies program. A memorandum of understanding was signed between the CISB and Nova Scotia Department of Education Ministry, Canada at a hotel in Dhaka. The MoU will help CISB students to get admitted directly to Canadian universities and universities around the world, said a media release. Deputy Education Minister Mohibul Hassan Chowdhoury was present as the chief guest. Dr. Vera Grayson-Kocay, former director of International Programs and Jerry Thibeau, Director International Programs, Education and Early Childhood - Development, Nova Scotia, Canada were also present. Among others, Angela Dark, Counselor and Senior Trade Commissioner of Canadian High Commission to Bangladesh, Shirin Akhter, MP, Chairman Mohammad Kamal Uddin, CEO Begum Shirin Jahan and Principal Janice Smales were also present.

Scholastica and Shaheed Police Smrity College won the titles of the HSBC-Mayor's Cup School Badminton 2023 in the boys' and girls' singles game and Rajuk Uttara Model College won the champion's title in the boys' and girls' doubles matches Saturday after a three-day competition. The tournament, held at Banani Kamal Ataturk Playground in the capital, saw the participation of badminton players of grades 9-12 from 19 schools and colleges in the city. At the prize-giving ceremony, Dhaka North City Corporation Mayor Atiqul Islam said: "Educational institutions must place equal importance on sports and culture along with studies. I'd like to thank HSBC for the initiative." HSBC Bangladesh CEO Md Mahbub ur Rahman said: "With the participation of 108 young players from 19 schools, this three-day tournament is reflective of the families' and thereby the society's commitment towards healthy living, physical wellness and community engagement." "I am sure these budding young athletes will use this platform to showcase their skills and enthusiasm to open up a world of opportunity in the coming days."

A staggering 78 million girls and boys around the world today “don’t go to school at all” because of conflict, climate disasters and displacement – while tens of millions more receive only sporadic teaching – UN Secretary-General António Guterres said Thursday. Calling for more funding for education in emergencies spearheaded by the UN global fund Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the UN chief in a video message said no one should be denied their chance to learn. A full 222 million children today experience blighted education, Guterres said. “To help them, 18 countries and private partners have pledged $826 million for UN global fund ECW, on the opening day of the landmark conference.” “No matter who you are, no matter where you live, no matter what barriers stand in your way, you have a right to a quality education,” he said, in an appeal for greater international efforts to ensure that more vulnerable children and youngsters get their chance to succeed. Read more: Govt to launch countrywide school feeding programme from June: State Minister Delivering his comments at the Education Cannot Wait High-Level Financing Conference in Geneva, the Secretary-General welcomed the fact that since it was founded in 2017, the fund had trained 87,000 teachers and given seven million children in crisis “the education they deserve”. As pledges from 18 countries and the private sector topped $826 million on the first day of the conference, UN Special Envoy for Global Education and Chair of ECW High-Level Steering Group Gordon Brown said: “We are talking about the most isolated, the most desolate, the most neglected children of the world. We’re talking about girls who find themselves trafficked or forced into child labour or child marriage unless we can help them.”

State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Zakir Hossain on Tuesday said the government will start feeding programme at all primary schools across the country from June this year. The school feeding programme was launched in 104 upazilas of the country in 2010 in the poverty-stricken areas and ended in June, 2022, he said while speaking at a programme at the Ministry. The school feeding programme played an effective role in fulfilling the nutritional need in children, cent enrollment in schools, regular attendance of students, reducing dropout rate and timely completion of education cycle, he said. Read more: Primary scholarship exam results to be published by Feb 28 So, the government has taken steps to launch feeding programme at primary schools across the country, said the minister. The government has taken an initiative to change 200 government primary schools’ names which are inappropriate, said Zakir. “A policy regarding this was issued on 23 January 2022.  We have decided to publish gazette within six months,” he said.  

The government has taken an initiative to change 200 government primary schools’ names which are inappropriate, said State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Zakir Hossain. “A policy regarding this was issued on 23 January 2022.  We have decided to publish gazette within six months,” he said. He said this at a press conference at the conference room of the secretariat on Tuesday. "We will change the negative names with decent and inspiring ones that honor our history, culture, prominent figures, and freedom fighters,” he said. Also Read: HC questions legality of primary school teacher recruitment on quota basis Secretary of the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education (MoPME) Farid Ahmed was also present there.    

The distribution of stipend money among the girls at secondary and higher secondary levels of educational institutions across the country was started through mobile banking on Thursday. Education Minister Dipu Moni inaugurated the distribution at her ministry on Thursday. The stipend beneficiaries will get a total over Tk 751.2 crore from the second instalment of July to December last year. The financial assistance is provided by the ‘Integrated Stipends Programme’ under the Prime Minister’s Education Assistance Trust. Deputy Minister for Education Barrister Mohibul Hasan Nowfel and Senior Secretary to Technical and Madrasha division Md Kamal Hossain, among others, were present there. Secondary and Higher Secondary division Secretary Solaiman Khan chaired the programme where the Prime Minister’s Education Assistance Trust Managing Director (additional secretary) Abdun Nur Muhammad Al Firoz delivered the welcome speech. No charges are imposed for cashing out the stipend money using mobile financial services. Read more: FY23: DPE to sign new deal with Nagad for stipend disbursement 

The "Safe Back to School" campaign alliance, which was formed following the Covid situation to bring back students to school, has started a new journey to ensure inclusive quality education for all in the country, under a new name: "Education Alliance Bangladesh – EAB." The declaration of this new name came at the Education Summit 2023 Wednesday in Dhaka. "Let's Work Together to Ensure Inclusive Quality Education in Bangladesh," is the new slogan of the alliance. During the opening ceremony, Onno van Manen, Save the Children Country Director said: "This alliance aims to continue working together so that we can reach a larger number of children who require our assistance. We need to elevate the voices of the children through this platform." The alliance will support the government to mitigate challenges related to quality and inclusive education. It will work with the government to strengthen the education system by taking initiatives to popularise technical/vocational education and fostering partnerships among education actors for accelerating a joyful learning environment. The closure of educational institutions from March 17, 2020, to February 14, 2021, required the launch of mass awareness campaigns as it triggered children dropout rates from schools in both urban and rural areas, causing an increase in child labour and child marriage. Against this backdrop, national and international NGOs working for the education sector in Bangladesh united themselves under the Safe Back to School. Safe Back to School's awareness campaign, research study, and advocacy-related discussions with government officials and stakeholders underlined the need for long-term activities to ensure the scope for education for all children in Bangladesh. The alliance members are Brac, British Council Bangladesh, CAMPE, Dhaka Ahsania Mission, Educo Bangladesh, FIVDB, Friendship, Habitat for Humanity Bangladesh, Humanity and Inclusion, Jagorani Chakra Foundation, Leonard Cheshire, Plan International Bangladesh, Room to Read, Save the Children, Sesame Workshop Bangladesh, Sight Savers Bangladesh, Stromme Foundation, Teach for Bangladesh, Voluntary Service Overseas, World Vision Bangladesh, and Young Power in Social Action. Read more: 'Safe Back to School’ campaign pledges full support for reopening    

The Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) has launched a two-day long 'Robo Carnival' to inspire students to make robots to make smart Bangladesh with the slogan 'Build Robot for Smart Bangladesh'. The two-day long carnival starts at the ECE building around 10 am today (January 19) and BUET vice Chancellor Dr Sattyaprashad Majumdar was the chief guest. About 500 students, divided into 125 groups, from the different schools, colleges and universities of the country are taking part in the two-day carnival. The carnival has been arranged to teach and inspire the students about different segments of Robotics like dust collecting robot competition, and firefighter robot competition. Besides the firefighter robot and trash collector robot competition, a project showcasing part, a workshop on Robotics Simulation software and a robotics olympiad for the competitors have been arranged. Tarikul Islam Tanvir, a student of Gopalganj Polytechnic Institute, who has developed an 'Earthquake digital safety system', said on his project: "We know that when an earthquake happens, many people die from being electrocuted. The safety system that I have developed will reduce the danger of being electrocuted in case any earthquake happens." "This safety system can detect earthquake vibration automatically and immediately after it cuts off the electricity lines and water supply lines. Besides, it sends automatic calls to alert the user about the earthquake. This system can be installed in every residential house and industrial sector but if the device is installed in district supply lines then there is no need to install the system separately in individual houses or industrial factories," Tanvir added. At the initial stage, BUET students took initial tests and presentations of the projects and later BUET teachers evaluated those projects. Read more: Ameca: World’s Most Realistic Advanced Humanoid Robot AI Platform    

The first phase of the Sheikh Kamal Inter-School and Madrasah Athletics Competition 2023, the country's biggest athletics completion, organised by the Bangladesh Athletics Federation (BAF) will begin on Saturday at the upazila level. Around 50 lakh promising athletes from all upazilas will compete in 32 events in four categories of the competition. President of Bangladesh Athletics Federation and Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina M Tofazzel Hossain Miah disclosed the details of the competition at a press conference in the capital Thursday evening. In A and B groups, sixth and eighth-graders will compete in 100-metre, and 200-metre runs, high jump and long jump. In C and D groups, ninth and tenth-graders will compete in 100-metre, 200-metre, 400-metre, 800-metre, 1500-metre runs, high jump, long jump, triple jump, javelin throw, shot put, discus throw and 4x100-metre relay race. The inter-upazila level competition will be held during January 14-28, the district level competition during February 1-5, and the divisional level during February 9-13. The final round of national level competition, featuring the winners of the divisional level, will be held later. Read more: National Athletics: Army lead medal table with 15 golds, 11 silvers, 13 bronzes