Pictures after Rain

By Mohtarimun Nahar [Bipa]

My friend Tanbirujjaman Tanbir is very fond of natural beauties. Whenever he gets time he takes pictures of nature from his mobile camera. Recently he celebrated his Eid-Ul-Fitre at his village in Rangpur. He took some excellent pictures after rain from there. Now I will share those pictures with all the bloggers.

My Best Friend

By Ayesha Sanjida Synthia

Way in life we get many friends. Some of them are true friends. One of them can be a best friend. It means a special person who helps us where we need, stay with us when we are very sorrowful or happiness.

I have a best friend in my life. Her, name is Sadia Alam. Her nick name is Chadni. She is 15 years old. She was my classmate. Recently, we passed our S.S.C exam & she got GP- 4.00. Now, she admitted herself in Motijheel Model College in Dhaka. Chadni has a small family with four members. She, her younger sister & her parents are the members of her family. Her father is an A.S.I of Police department & her mother is a house-wife.

She is a very good girl & very helpful. She takes care of me very much. We have good understanding. She is very naughty. Nobody, can get angry on her. Chadni’s favorite color is white. Her favorite food is burger; fruit is litchi & flower is tuberose. Her favorite place is her bedroom. Her hobbies are watching TV, playing cricket, gossiping with friends, reading books, etc.

In future she wants to be a journalist. So, she wants to make strong educational back ground. Now, she works more hard to reach her dreams.

She likes to make fun with everyone. She helps me or other friends to give us good advices. So, I like her very much. My best wishes are for her. I feel very proud that she is my best friend.

The English Sections of Nari Jibon Project

Mohtarimun Nahar [Bipa]
[The Supervisor of English Section & Editing]

Nari Jibon Project provides alternative skills for girls & women. Actually it is a training program. The Executive Director of this Project is Kathryn B Ward. She is a Professor of Sociology and Women’s Studies of Illinois University, Carbondale. She started this project in March 2005 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Funding comes from her and her mother Pat Ward and nominally from the students’ admission fees and other donations.

Here different aged of girls and women can take courses on English, Bengali, Tailoring, Computer Office Program, Graphics and Photography etc. Most of the students are of school, college and university levels. Also sex workers can get admitted in English, computers or any other sections in Nari Jibon.

Here we have Nari [Women] Cyber Café only for girls and women. Students are to submit their assignments to the related teachers and practice on English and Computer in this cyber café.

We have also a Blog Project in English [titled “Bangladesh from Our View” [http://narijibon.blogspot.com] and Bengali [“Amader Galpa (Our Stories)” [http://banglablog-narijibon.blogspot.com ] to enhance students’ & staffs’ creativity on different areas.
To know more about Nari Jibon Project you can visit-- www.narijiobon.com.

In Nari Jibon Project we have two English sections: English-1 [Basic Grammar, Reading, Writing and Speaking] and English-2 [Advanced Speaking, Reading & Writing]. Beside those two Practice Classes[Special English Spoken Practice Class] are held on Friday and Saturday morning.

I am the teacher of these sections. Some times many visiting teachers come to take English classes to encourage the students. The students are to attend in the English Sections before taking the computer course. Before admitting here students are to attend an admission test and their sections are decided on their results.

After every three/four month’s guardian meetings and prize giving ceremony are arranged. We also arrange blog workshop by experienced people. Now I will give some descriptions about Nari Jibon English classes.

English-1 [Basic Grammar, Reading, Writing and Speaking]:
Teacher: Mohtarimun Nahar (Bipa)

Course objectives:

• Students will learn Basic English vocabulary.
• Students will learn Basic English grammar rules.
• Materials mostly given in English (immersion).
• Practice on speaking, writing, reading, and understanding will be assigned in each class.
• Students will be able to: read, write and speak.
• Remove students’ hesitation on speaking.
• Students will contribute to the English blog.
• At the end of the course, students will be prepared to move to English 2.
Course requirements:
• Students must know the English alphabet before attending this class.
• Students will do their homework as requested.
• Students will develop their portfolio and plan.

Students will diligently attend classes, and provide adequate reasons for absence. They will be required to make up missed work.

English-2 [Advanced Speaking, Reading & Writing]:
Teacher: Mohtarimun Nahar (Bipa)

English 2 is the final course in English at Nari Jibon. Students who have completed English 1 and have passed a competency exam (oral and written) are eligible to join this class. English 2 is taught completely in English, and each class includes elements of speaking, reading, writing and comprehension. Students are expected to submit homework assignments as required by their teacher, to attend class regularly, and to sit for exams as scheduled.

Course objectives:

• Students will improve their English vocabulary.
• Students will improve their English grammar rules.
• Students will be able to: read, write and speak.
• Students will increase their confidence when conversing in English.
• Students will contribute to the English blog.
• Students will develop their portfolios.
• Students will complete internships.
• At the end of the course, students will be able to hold a conversation with a native English speaker, read and understand English writing, and write grammatically correct memos, essays and prose.

Rules of English- 1 & 2:

• The course will be finished within two months [English-1 within 24 classes and English- 2 within 16 classes].
• Students are required to purchase a cyber café pass card and complete their homework in the cyber café, at least one hour per week.
• Class Days & Time:
English-2: Wednesday & Friday [03.00 am – 05:00 pm].
Special English Spoken Practice Class: Saturday [11:00 am – 01:00 pm].
English-1: Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday [03.00am – 05:00pm].
Special English Spoken Practice Class: Friday [11:00 am – 01:00 pm].
• Keep the mobile on vibrate in the class.
• Students will submit their assignments by sheet or through email.
• In every class, speaking will be practiced on different topics.
• After graduation, students will have to finish the internship program [for two weeks].
• If students miss more than one week of English class, they will be dropped from the class.
• If students refuse to turn in homework for more than two weeks, they will be dropped from the class.


The practices are done by:

Speaking	To be able to speak in different places on different topics and practice from diagram.
Writing	To be able to write paragraph, applications, cover letters, bio-data etc. and make portfolio.
Reading	To be able to read any passes or paragraphs fluently and the pronunciation will be corrected
Listening	To be able to understand English by listening and answer from given questions on that.
Question Answering	To be able to make questions and answer to those. Students will practice by answering some questions to one another and ask about class room objects.
Submitting assignments	Students submit their assignments on class related topics and BLOG. They will type in cybercafé and submit those through email to: mn.bipa@gmail.com ; bipa19@yahoo.com
Browsing internet	Students will browse some website and blogspot site and submit assignments as required by the teacher.

Some Pictures of English Class & Students of Nari Jibon:

I am [yellow dress] with the English students in Blog Workshop

Lee Goldman is in the English Class

A student is taking her prize from Mr. Rafiqul Islam [Project Director of Nari Jibon]

Sufia [NJ student] with the visiting Teachers [Aruna, Muniyat, Stella and Lee]

Lee with the English Class Students

Stella is in the English Class

Lee Goldman, Stella and Aruna are in the English Class

Stella, Muniyat and Aruna are in the English Class

The Visiting Teachers of Nari Jibon Project

By Mohtarimun Nahar [Bipa]
Supervisor of English Section & Editing
Nari Jibon Project

Nari Jibon project is a training program. In Nari Jibon Project we have two English sections: English-1 [Basic Grammar, Reading, Writing and Speaking] and English-2 [Advanced Speaking, Reading & Writing]. Beside these classes two Practice Classes [Special English Spoken Practice Class] are held on Friday and Saturday morning. I am the teacher of these sections. Some times many visiting teachers come to take English classes to encourage the students.They do a great job. Students enjoy a lot to attend the class with them. That’s why I would like to introduce our visiting teachers with all the bloggers.

Shaina Hyder

She is Sociology major at Florida State University. She is most interested in gender and work.

Stella

She is from Canada. She is BA in Asian Studies, Masters in Education and PHD in Multicultural Studies [Specialization in Theatre]. She worked as a University Professor at Lesley University in Boston, University of Phoenix and Skogit Ualley College. She taught Philosophy, Theatre, Education, Ethics and Communication etc.

Aruna Dahal

She is the students of the American International School at Dhaka. She has a sister and a brother. She is sixteen years old. She decided to come to help out the women centre as part of her service hours. She has lived in many countries, such as- Nepal, Cambodia and Laos etc. She thinks Dhaka has been an amazing experience for her especially when she gets to come to help such wonderful women.

Muniyat Haque

She has lived in Canada. She studies in AIS/D. She wants to study in Economics and be an Economist.

Lee Goldman

She teaches math at the American International School at Dhaka. She has a husband and two children. She came from the United States in Virginia. She came to know about Nari Jibon from her friend Rick Davis. In the States she was a teacher in a girls school

Memorable Day

By Ayesha Sanjida Synthia

In the last winter of 2007 I went to National Zoo with my family. The zoo is situated in Mirpur. We started our journey at 6 o’clock. We reached at the zoo at 7 o’clock. It was a great pleasure to visit the zoo. At first we took tickets. There was a huge rush in front of the zoo. When we got into the zoo I saw, it was staying very hard security in every where. When we entered in the zoo, our joys know no bounds.

At first we went to the den of the monkeys. The monkeys were coming close to us and we were giving them chips, nuts and banana. The monkeys were enjoying the foods. Then we visited to the den of the tigers and the lions. In the mean time we got tried and sit down to take some snacks. After that we saw the giraffe, zebra, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, crocodile, tortoise, different kinds of snake and python. The zebra looks nice. As it was winter, the zoo lake was full of different birds. I saw the peacock, crane, kingfisher, vulture, cuckoo, parrot, mynah, nightingale, owl, eagle, kite, woodpecker, goose, duck, cockatoo and our national robin. The jiraf looks awesome.

In the zoo we also visit to a museum. It was animal’s museum. From the museum I knew about many animals. At last we arrived at the den of the elephants. We also rode on elephant for a short time. It was very enjoyable.

When we finished moving around the zoo, it was about 1 o’clock. We came out from the zoo. We were very tired and thirsty. It was the memorable day in my life.