Editorial
A centre for world class education
Aga Khan's welcome initiative
THE laying of foundation stone for the Aga Khan Academy in the city on Tuesday by Prince Karim Aga Khan has gone down as a crowning act of his august visit to Bangladesh. It has provided with an opportunity for us to greet his educational vision. The leader of the Ismailia community has reminded people once more of the ethical principles that should govern education. The academy in Dhaka is one of eighteen such centres of learning around the world and the first in a Muslim country Bangladesh. We are happy that Karim Aga Khan has chosen to have the academy established here.
While we appreciate the move, we cannot but point out some basic ideas that the academy must work on if it means to be any different from the usual run of educational institutions. Significantly, the Aga Khan has spoken of three principles guiding the academy, the first one being the centrality of quality education as an element in Islamic tradition; the second being integrity of local and national cultures with students being connected to global perspectives having due regard to each person's particular heritage; and last but not least, it will follow dual language curriculum in native tongue and English. In other words, connectivity -- and not just between people in Bangladesh but also with others outside our frontiers -- will be one of the fundamental aims behind the working of the academy.
All these ideas, as propounded by the Aga Khan, are welcome because they aim at an inculcation of modernity in young minds. A purely merit-based approach should be the tenor of the whole programme. And we are heartened by the fact that 'young men and women from all backgrounds, 'irrespective of ability to pay' will find access to the academy. Our hope is that talented students from poor households, who are deprived of high quality learning will get a chance to be educated in the world class academy. Having observed some recent trends of education in private universities, we suggest that the Aga Khan Academy set some new standards in education through making it available to all and making it affordable for all.
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