In a Round Table discussion held on 16 July at Bishaw Shahitto Kendro in the city the discussants called for an urgent need to introduce media literacy among the secondary level students on the context of ever-expanding media landscape and the unrestrained overflow of information. The discussants emphasized for a safe, positive and rational use and utilization of media and information by the students. The Round Table discussion has been organized on the eve of dissemination of a baseline survey findings on media literacy of the Secondary level students of Dhaka City. Recently, as part of implementing “Promoting Media Literacy in Bangladesh” project, South Asia Center for Media in Development (SACMID) has conducted this survey among 500 students of 16 secondary schools of Dhaka city under the support of Free Press Unlimited. SACMID has organized this roundtable discussion on dissemination of the survey findings in collaboration with Access to Information (A2I) under Prime Ministers Secretariat.
Presided over by Mr.Nazar-E-Zilani,the board member of SACMID,the roundtable discussant was graced by the presence of Professor Dr.Md.Abdul Mannan, Director (Secondary),Directorate of Secondary and Higher Secondary under Ministry of Education as Chief Guest. Among the special guests, there were Associate Professor AKM Reazul Hassan, Member, National Curriculum & Text Book Board (NCTB) and Dr.Jude William, Chairman, Media Studies and Journalism Department, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB). After the presentation of the key findings by Dr.Barbak Quarmal, Professor, MSJ department of ULAB, the lead researcher on behalf of the research team, the panel discussants have reflected and provided valuable suggestions and inputs on the future course of action for SACMID and its media literacy interventions. Among the (invited) panel discussants there were Professor Moniroor Rashid, Department of Information, Education & Research, Dhaka University, Mr.Shahidul Islam, Program Officer, Education, UNESCO, Mr.Rafiqul Islam Sujon, Educational Technology Expert,A2I Program, Mr.Mofakkharul Islam, Education Expert, BRAC and Mr.K.M.Shahidul Haq,Senior Journalist, Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha(BSS),the national news agency.06 teachers from selected schools, representatives from the parents and students, Bishaw Shahitto Kendro (BSK) Deputy Director Mesbah Sumon and Advisor Anjon Dey also joined in the discussion. The program has received wide media coverage from the leading newspapers of the country like Daily Star, Prothom Alo, Ittefaq, Nayadiganto, Bhorer Kagoj, Alokito Bangladesh and online news portals Bangla Tribune, Dhaka Times, 71Shongbad, Education Bangla, Sharebiz etc.
The program was started with a welcome speech, introduction of SACMID and describing the objectives of media literacy program by Syed Kamrul Hasan, Deputy Director & Program Manager of SACMID. The Program was moderated by Afia Pina, Coordinator, Media Literacy Project, SACMID.
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