Browsing by Author "Tabassum, T."

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APPLICATION OF REVISED BLOOMS TAXONOMY IN ENGLISH TEST BATTERIES FOR AGRICULTURE STUDENTS IN BANGLADESH: AN EVALUATIVE INVESTIGATION
(Sher-e-Bangia Agricultural University Research System (SAURES), 2023-07) Sultana, F.; Sharma, V.; Tabassum, T.; Taher, G. M. A.
Learning outcomes of an English course are successfully materialized when the contents are assessed, tested, and finally evaluated in a valid and reliable way, strengthening a positive backwash effect. Benjamin Bloom's Taxonomy is widely accepted and used as an assessment tool that measures the students' cognitive development. This paper aims to evaluate the English question papers prepared for the agriculture learners using revised Bloom's taxonomy at a public agricultural university in Bangladesh. It explores the extent to which the objectives of the English curriculum are reflected in question papers. Notwithstanding, it also investigates the cognitive level of taxonomy in practice to assess the students' proficiency. The impetus to work on this topic comes from observing students' more unsatisfactory performance in the English final examination that reflects their low level of understanding. For this purpose, the English curriculum and questions of different faculties during 2015 to 2019 have been taken into account as a source of data. Moreover, critical descriptive and content analyses are accomplished depending on the verb lists of Bloom's taxonomy. Besides, the collected data are then quantified to demonstrate them in a statistical form. Accordingly, five English teachers were interviewed on the application of Bloom's taxonomy in the research context. Henceforth, this study includes a mixed-method approach using both qualitative and quantitative data. The findings of the paper reveal that the question papers include mostly the lower-domain or level of taxonomy focusing the remember, understand, and to some extent apply levels. Further, the objectives have not been duly justified in the question papers. Hence, it reveals that the present assessment technique does not follow a higher domain of metacognitive skills in developing the creative faculty of the students. Finally, the study suggests that the existing English questions need to be prepared to focus on the higher cognitive domain of knowledge to make the learners cognitively competent in communication.
The Dera Heterotopia: Meaning of Home for the Hijra Community
(Research and Development Wing, MIST, 2025-12-30) Sameen, S.; Hossain, A. R.; Jerin, F.; Shreya, S.; Anjum, S. A.; Mumtarin, A.; Tabassum, T.
The hijra community, representative of third gender individuals, is one of the most deprived communities in Bangladesh. Not conforming to traditional gender binary identities, they do not embrace the conventional notion of family and home. In this context, the study is exploratory research that delves into the realm of hijras, observing their relationship with their dwelling spaces and seeking how they negotiate the meaning of home. By examining hijra dwellings called deras, it aims to understand the dynamics of the hijra lifestyle and ultimately uphold their lived experiences against a dehumanized image of them in the context of Dhaka. For this purpose, the study employs a qualitative approach, drawing on everyday narratives gathered through interviews, group discussions, and observations. Applying Rapoport’s framework for linking the built environment with culture and lifestyle, the paper uncovers the meanings of dera at three levels: at the lower level, it finds that dera provides everyday shelter and a new purpose to these outcasts against the hostile world. At mid-level, the deras become a locus of fostering social relations and a spatial manifestation of hijra existence. And finally, the higher-level meanings reveal a constant juxtaposition of loss and belonging, colourful appearances with feelings of estrangement, and initiation of hijra life with the constant desire for a normal one, making dera a ‘heterotopic space’ a manifestation of the otherness, as per Foucault’s concept of another place. The findings of the paper deepen our understanding of how individuals navigate the oppression of stigma and marginality while actively shaping and transforming their identities in adverse circumstances. It uncovers important relationships between (marginal) community and (housing) environment that can contribute to potential future research within the discourse of spatial justice. The study, by upholding marginal voices of hijra population around everyday space, advocates for their right to the city.