Is the Universal English Education from the Primary Level in Bangladesh Necessary? A Domain Wise Study

Abstract

Bangladesh is a monolingual country where Bangla is the official language for education, administration, media, literature, and cultural activities. The constitution of Bangladesh in 1972 recognized the undisputed status of Bangla as the state language of Bangladesh. Various measures have been taken by successive governments to ensure the widespread use of Bangla in all spheres of national life. In Parallel, English is being taught as a compulsory subject from class 1 throughout class 12. But the introduction of English as a compulsory subject from class 1 in the primary level has been condemned as an unnecessary burden on the infantile psyche which is already burdened with the stress of learning other subjects. The question thus raised is whether we need to teach all our population English compulsorily or selectively on the basis of needs analysis. I will try to find an answer to this question through the analysis of the use of English and Bangla in various domains of national life. This paper suggests that instead of teaching English compulsorily from primary education onward, a need-based English language teaching policy should be planned.