Thesis (Master of Arts in English)

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10361/28415

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Open Access
Students’ experiences of using AI conversational tools to enhance their speaking confidence in English
(BRAC University, 2026-06) Farisha, Nujhat Kashfia; Rubaiat, Shakika; Department of English and Humanities
Free versions of AI conversation apps are widely used for English speaking practice, but we know very little about how their limits (like daily time caps, annoying pop‑up ads, and locked features) affect learning. I interviewed five high school students one‑on‑one using Zoom. Three of them only used the free version of Duolingo; the other two also paid for subscriptions to Lingoda or Cambly. I analysed the interview transcripts using thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006). The students said they liked the privacy and safety of AI apps because it made them less anxious than speaking in class. But free‑version users often got frustrated when the app didn't understand their accent, sounded robotic, or showed an ad right after they made a mistake. Paid users got live feedback from real teachers and felt much more confident. Everyone agreed that apps can't replace talking to real people. Free‑version problems – especially ads popping up after errors – broke their focus, killed motivation, and made practice inconsistent. Paid users struggled with high subscription costs that sometimes forced them to pause their learning. The study shows that punishing mistakes with ads works against learning. App designers should offer ad‑free basic speaking practice and cheaper student plans.
Open Access
English-speaking fluency barriers faced by Bengali-medium students in tertiary education in Bangladesh
(BRAC University, 2026-06) Sonali, Tahmina Akther; Farhat, Nazah; Department of English and Humanities
The present thesis explores the English-speaking fluency barriers encountered by Bengali-medium students as they transition into tertiary education in Bangladesh. Using a qualitative case study design, the study draws on semi-structured interviews with eight students and four teachers from two private university in Dhaka, examining linguistic, psychological, and institutional dimensions of fluency barriers. The findings suggest that recurrent exposure to examination-oriented, grammar-translation pedagogy at the secondary level tends to be associated with limited procedural speaking competence, even though participants had completed 12 years of formal English instruction. Participants also reported psychological barriers including presentation anxiety, perfectionism, and fear of negative evaluation that appear to amplify the linguistic challenges. Mother-tongue influence and a sudden shift to English-Medium Instruction further contributed to what participants described as a "transition shock." Nevertheless, students reported engaging in self-directed strategies, including media exposure and peer practice, while teachers used translanguaging and supportive feedback to mitigate these barriers. The study underscores the need for systemic coordination between secondary and tertiary education, including assessment reform that integrates speaking and listening, teacher-training reform, and university-level bridging provisions.
Open Access
AI and liberation pedagogy at tertiary-level English writing: Perceptions of teachers, students, and job holders
(BRAC University, 2026-05) Tasnim, Zannat Ara; Sanjana, Lubaba; Department of English and Humanities
Today, we are living in the age of AI where anything and everything is massively influenced by AI. In this case, the education system is also included as students, teachers and every stakeholder need to stay updated with all the advancement to practice it at a pedagogical level. As writing is an important productive skill and a great number of studies show that AI has a great influence on writing skill however, there is hardly any study which deals with the influence of AI on liberation pedagogy at tertiary level students’ English writing. Therefore, the researcher felt interested to explore the influence of AI on liberation pedagogy at tertiary level English writing in the context of Bangladesh. In this study, the researcher chose Paulo Freire's famous concept of liberation pedagogy as it goes well with the tertiary education system. This study will explore the influence of AI in liberation pedagogy at tertiary level English writing and the perceptions of students, teachers and English graduate job holders. This is qualitative study where data has been collected through classroom observation, semi structured interviews, and focus group discussion. The participants were university students and teachers from the English Department. Also graduates from the department of English who are currently doing writing related jobs where the researcher followed purposive sampling technique. After that, through thematic analysis of the data, the researcher sorted prominent themes and tried to explore the influence of AI on liberation pedagogy and the perceptions of students, teachers and also the impact of this in writing related job fields.
Open Access
Exploring teacher-student relationships and teacher questioning strategies in tertiary ESOL classes in Bangladesh
(BRAC University, 2026-05) Sabiha, Ummah; Sanjana, Lubaba; Department of English and Humanities
Teacher questioning as a means of fostering interaction in second language classrooms is common, but in Bangladeshi tertiary ESOL contexts, hesitation, limited response or non-response are common among students. This paper examines the emotional experiences that students undergo when teachers question them and the factors that affect their responses and how teachers view student reluctance. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with students and teachers employing a qualitative approach to gain a closer insight into classroom practices. The results show that students often feel anxiety, nervousness and fear of being evaluated negatively when responding to questions. These emotional responses normally result in stuttering, speech blockage and silence despite the students being knowledgeable of the answers. The study also identifies the main pedagogical factors that influence participation including the style of questioning, wait-time and teacher student relationships. It was discovered that open-ended questions and wait-time were more effective to elicit more confident answers, whereas supportive and non-judgmental attitudes of teachers lowered anxiety. Even though teachers recognized emotional barriers, they occasionally explained silence by language barriers. In general, the results indicate that silence is a situational reaction that depends on emotional and interactional influences and is not the result of inability. It is suggested that teachers ought to employ positive, open-ended questioning techniques and sufficient wait-time to minimize anxiety and promote active student learning.
Open Access
Exploring Bangladeshi tertiary students’ use of vlogs for learning English
(BRAC University, 2026-01) Asa, Athoy Alam; Ahmed, Sabreena; Department of English and Humanities
This study explores the impact of vlogging on English learning among tertiary-level students in Bangladesh and examines how students utilise vlogging to enhance their language skills. A qualitative phenonomenological approach was adopted, selecting six students from private universities in Bangladesh. The students participated in semi structured interviews and data were collected through zoom. The findings reveal that vlogging positively influences English language learning by enhancing speaking fluency, vocabulary usage, and overall confidence. The students reported that creating vlogs encouraged them to practice English regularly, reflect on their language errors, and receive constructive feedback from peers. Some students noted initial difficulties in organising content and expressing ideas clearly in English but gradually improved through repeated practice. The participants emphasised that vlogging also increased their motivation to learn English and made language practice more enjoyable. This research highlights the potential of vlogging as an effective tool for language development and offers insights into strategies students can adopt to strengthen their English proficiency, fostering more engaging and interactive learning experiences in higher education not only in an ESOL context as Bangladesh but also around the world.
Open Access
Parents’ perceptions of English language teaching in English medium preschools in Bangladesh
(BRAC University, 2026-06) Tasnim, Fariha; Tafannum, Atiya; Department of English and Humanities
Preschool education plays a significant role in children‘s learning and development. It trains children for future pedagogical experiences and supports them to reach their full potential. Parents play significantly to children‘s early growth, and their opinions of early childhood education are essential for providing efficient and successful preschool programs. This study aims to investigate parents‘ perceptions concerning preschool education. It raises awareness about the significance and current situation of pre-primary education through exploring parents‘ perceptions and experiences on preschool programs. This research is a qualitative approach. Data is acquired by in-depth interviews and focus group discussion with parents of preschool children in Dhaka. The collected data is audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analysed using thematic analysis. The findings stated that parents hold positive attitudes toward English language learning in preschool. They consider English as an important skill that can contribute to their children‘s future academic success and global competitiveness. Parents anticipate their children to develop communication competence, vocabulary, and overall language proficiency from an early age. Moreover, the study showed that parents observed developments in their children's English vocabulary and communication competence because of preschool English instruction. However, participants also reported different challenges, including absence of clear direction from schools concerning how English should be taught and practiced at home. Despite these obstacles, parents help their children's learning through everyday conversation, media, practice of school-taught content, and encouragement.
Open Access
Self-efficacy strategies used by Bangladeshi students studying in native English-speaking countries
(BRAC University, 2026-06) Huq, Syeda Sumaia Zarnaz; Ahmed, Sabreena; Department of English and Humanities
In today’s globalised world, people often migrate from one country to another for various purposes. Corresponding to this globalisation, non-native English speakers like Bangladeshis also migrate to native English-speaking contexts. This study explores the difficulties that Bangladeshi students face in communicative aspects while studying in a native English context abroad and how they overcome it through their self-efficacy. The study adopted a qualitative phenomenological approach where the researcher used snowball sampling to select ten Bangladeshi international students who are living in native English-speaking countries. The participants were asked to share their journey of transitioning from non-native English-speaking context to native English-speaking context through a semi-structured interview. The thematic analysis of the interview transcriptions reveals that in the first few days or months of transitioning to native English-speaking context, the non-native English-speaking Bangladeshi students struggle not only to comprehend native and other English accents but also to communicate fluently. However, they adapt to the native English-speaking context gradually by using their self-efficacy strategies like practicing English with the natives, being exposed to native English multimedia, motivating own self to continue communication and so on. The results suggest curriculum and policy reforms so that students can practice spoken English academically without being afraid of any judgmental environment. The research contributes to understand the challenges that Bangladeshi students face in terms of communication while studying abroad and the importance of self-efficacy strategies to fight the challenges to cope in the native English-speaking context.
Open Access
Novel ways of assessing tertiary level students’ English language courses in the era of AI
(BRAC University, 2026-05) Islam, Sadia; Rubaiat, Shakika; Department of English and Humanities
The emergence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) brings some opportunities and challenges for the people of the new technologically advanced world, specifically in the education sector. Particularly in the context of students' assessment the impact of AI is more vivid. This study examines the kinds of assessment challenges tertiary level's English language teachers face in this AI era, how they deal with those challenges, and their preferences regarding new types of assessments in response to AI. Qualitative research methodology has been followed to conduct this study. The relevant data have been collected through semi-structured interviews. Four faculty members participated in this study and the data were analysed thematically. This findings identified some significant challenges regarding assessment such as unable to differentiate AI-Generated work and Student-driven Work, difficulty in assessing students’ actual skill or learning progress, unsupervised Take-Home assessments are the most problematic and teachers lack institutional training on effective student assessment in the AI era. This study also highlighted some teachers' preferable assessment in response to AI those are employing creative tasks, process-oriented assessment and project-based assessment etc. The study strongly emphasizes the demand for institutional training on assessment and effective policies on ethical AI integration in the education sector.
Open Access
Teaching English for specific purpose: A study on the strategies for teaching and learning English as a second language in Pharmacy departments in Bangladesh
(BRAC University, 2023-12) Akhter, Sumya; Sultana, Syeda Farzana; Department of English and Humanities
This study explores the pedagogical approaches employed by pharmacy departments in Bangladesh for instructing pharmacy students in English as a second language (ESL). The research seeks to comprehend the present condition of ESL instruction, ascertain the challenges encountered by students and teachers, and suggest techniques to augment the quality of language teaching. The study used a mixed-method approach, including qualitative methods like as interviews and document analysis, to collect data from students in different pharmacy departments around Bangladesh. The findings demonstrate that the provision of English as a Second Language (ESL) education in pharmacy departments is intricate, as students encounter challenges such as varying levels of English proficiency, linguistic barriers, and limited exposure to authentic pharmaceutical communication situations. The study suggests various approaches to enhance English for Specific Purposes (ESP) teaching in pharmacy departments. These approaches include developing curriculum modules that integrate pharmaceutical terminology and communication skills, introducing real-life case studies and practical exercises, and promoting a collaborative learning environment. The study seeks to address the lack of professional competency in the field of pharmacy in Bangladesh by empowering instructors and students and enhancing the overall quality of English language education.
Open Access
A comparative study of physical and psychological trauma in Mahabharata and Indian films Mom (2017) and Bhoomi (2017)
(BRAC University, 2026) Zaman, Samira; Tabassum, Samirah; Department of English and Humanities
This thesis examines the multifaceted representation of physical and psychological trauma emerging from gender-based violence, which will be focusing on the themes of brutality, enforced silence, and the complex aftermath in cultural narratives and real world incidents. Drawing on trauma theory such as Cathy Caruth, Judith Herman, and Elaine Scarry this study will highlight a comparative feminist lens to analyze how those elements are connected across mythology, literature, cinema and contemporary real life cases focusing on women’s experiences in patriarchal societies. Draupadi in the Mahabharata, whose public humiliation symbolized the humiliation and psychological violation, compounded by the societal silence from complicated elders. The Bollywood film Mom (2017), starring Sridevi, shifts to cinematic vengeance the film conveys unspoken suffering and the moral ambiguities of revenge, empowering the silenced victims through proxy. The Bollywood film Bhoomi (2017), also showed cinematic vengeance on a paternal perspective on the “protective” patriarch’s reaction to sexual abuse. Both the film Mom (2017) and Bhoomi (2017) provide a gendered comparison of vengeance. Through these comparisons of cross-medium, this thesis will reveal the violence of patriarchal assertion, silence as secondary victimization and aftermath empowerment and justice. Ultimately, this study argues that breaking silence through representation fosters collective resistance, contributes to trauma studies, feminist discourse, and calls for policy reform in addressing gender-based violence.
Open Access
Teacher code-switching as a scaffolding tool in primary ESL classrooms in Bangladesh
(BRAC University, 2026-01) Siddiqui, Jarin Tasnim; Rubaiat, Shakika; Department of English and Humanities
This study investigates how Bangladeshi primary ESL teachers use code-switching between Bangla and English as a scaffolding tool to support young learners’ English development. Grounded in Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory and the Zone of Proximal Development, the research conceptualises code-switching as a mediational strategy that provides temporary, adaptive support rather than a sign of linguistic deficiency. A qualitative design using semi-structured interviews and classroom observations explores when, why, and how teachers switch codes, and how these practices interact with English-only policy discourses. Thematic analysis reveals the functions of code-switching in clarifying concepts, reducing anxiety, and promoting participation, while also highlighting risks of overreliance. The study offers context-sensitive implications for teacher education, bilingual pedagogy, and language-in-education policy in Bangladesh.
Open Access
The unexplored realities of the students of urban slum during and after COVID-19: Impacts, challenges and resolutions
(BRAC University, 2026-04) Rozario, Badhon Hilarash; Ahmed, Sabreena; Department of English and Humanities
The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a global crisis that affected every facet of daily life, including education. The most profound challenges faced by students specifically slum students during the pandemic were often overlooked. Therefore, the study explored the slum-dwelling students in and after the pandemic to unveil the unidentified stories, experiences, and challenges of these poor and marginalized students alienated from mainstream students. A qualitative multiple case study was adopted through semi-structured interviews to identify their experiences and harsh realities during the pandemic. This research was conducted among twenty-five high school urban slum students in a tuition-free underprivileged school. The study's major findings through the qualitative thematic analysis of the interview transcripts show that many of the students left Dhaka for their ancestral home due to the economic crisis, the closure of all forms of classes, the inability to have technological devices, and the want of helpful personnel in their studies. Their challenges were psychological, physical, social, civic, and technological illiteracy. This piece of work fills the gap in exploring the realities of slum-dwelling students in and after the pandemic, seeking the probable steps they took to continue their studies, and providing some recommendations for the state and society to work out. The study also invites advanced research to discover the complexities and constraints of the slum students, particularly related to education.
Open Access
Encountering western feminism in Leila Aboulela’s fictional world
(BRAC University, 2025-12) Islam, Fouzia Nayrit; Huq, Sabiha; Department of English and Humanities
In contemporary times, Arab feminism has emerged as a critical discourse that demands equal rights for Arab women by challenging patriarchal authority and gendered power structures. The second wave of Western feminism has generated significant global influence by universalizing women’s issues and promoting a single feminist framework for women’s liberation. Arab feminism has not remained outside of its influence. However, the realities and experiences of Arab women are shaped by distinct cultural, social, religious norms and expectations of Arab society, resulting in diverse issues and understandings of liberation which are not adequately addressed yet. The prominent Egyptian author, Leila Aboulela has introduced a new framework of Arab feminism that effectively considers the distinct social, cultural and religious realities of Arab women while highlighting the limitations of Western feminist ideals in Arab contexts. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the way in which Aboulela’s fictions challenge the dominant Western ideology and perspectives of women’s liberation by delineating their authentic realities, their ambitions and understandings of liberation which are deeply intertwined with cultural and religious norms and values. This research emphasizes that a separate and unique feminist model, independent of Western influence, is required for Arab women that will adequately address their concerns and issues based on their geopolitical and social contexts. Also, this study claims that Leila Aboulela has set an example of a distinct model of Arab feminism where Islamic values and genuine feminine desires of family and community life co-exist with independence and empowerment.
Open Access
Teachers’ feedback-giving strategies in English language assessment: a study of urban primary schools in Bangladesh
(BRAC University, 2025-08) Payel, Sajnin Alam; Tafannum, Atiya; Department of English and Humanities
Feedback is a key component of the learning and teaching process as it helps students to understand their strengths, weaknesses, identity where they need to work for improvement, and develop their knowledge and skills effectively on English language. By exploring feedback giving practices of teachers this study aims to understand how feedback strategies and type of feedback are applied in the real classroom setting and how teachers support students’ learning outcomes in a meaningful way. The study adopted a qualitative approach, where the researcher used the purposive sampling technique to choose seven teachers from primary level. The findings of the study were collected through semi-structured interviews. The study shows that teachers’ feedback on students' performance works significantly because without feedback learners do not understand their strengths, weaknesses and their needs. Furthermore, teachers’ guidance and instructions offer learners a better understanding of their mistakes. However, several challenges were also identified, including large classroom sizes with several students, lack of teachers’ training on feedback, lack of resources, time limitations, varying needs and levels of the learners and so forth. The findings highlight the variety of feedback strategies used by teachers based on learners' needs and performance. The study also provides insight into the role of feedback in supporting learners' learning outcomes. The findings also suggest directions for further research and improvement in feedback practices.
Open Access
Negotiating roots and routes in Jhumpa Lahiri’s Interpreter of Maladies
(BRAC University, 2026-01) Islam, Meheraj Rubayat; Huq, Sabiha; Department of English and Humanities
The research paper examines the representation of South Asian diasporic experiences in Jhumpa Lahiri’s Interpreter of Maladies, focusing on the struggle between cultural backgrounds and migratory paths as a negotiation. Drawing on theories of hybridity and alterity in a postcolonial context, particularly in the work of Homi K. Bhabha and Edward Said, the investigation explores how identity is articulated and put under stress and reconfiguration (redefinition) by displacement, memory, and cultural encounter. Based on qualitative textual analysis, the dissertation uses four chosen stories, specifically: “A Temporary Matter”, “Interpreter of Maladies”, “When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine”, and “The Third and Final Continent” to explore emotional turmoil, psychological complexity, and cultural dilemma that first and second-generation Indian immigrants face in the United States. The characters in Lahiri’s stories exist in the interworld, where they are uncertain of their identity, and it keeps shifting. Movement and migration are part of their identity rather than residing in a particular place. The immigrants of the first generation draw power from the recollection of their homeland and cultural heritage, that enable them to survive in new surroundings. In comparison, the second-generation needs to seek belonging differently and, in most cases, in scattered and challenging social and cultural networks. The psychological impacts of migration and resettlement, which include the sensation of loss, longing, fear, and resilience, are also exposed by the stories. Lahiri’s examination of interiors, the unstated, austerity, and metonymic objects all contribute to this sharp portrayal of cultural struggle and emotional negotiation. Overall, the study shows how diasporic identities in Lahiri's writings are formed in the relationship between inherited cultural pasts and migration experiences. The work also contributes more broadly to diaspora and identity studies by its attention to the affective dimensions and lived experiences of transnational lives.
Open Access
Digital nations and fragmented identities: women, nationalism and online politics in A Burning and Americanah
(BRAC University, 2026-01) Roy, Monisha; Tasnim, Sumaiya; Department of English and Humanities
This paper analyzes how nationalist media and digital politics shape women's voice and identity in Megha Majumder’s A Burning (2020) and Chimamanda’s Ngozi Adechie’s Americanah (2013). Using close textual analysis, this paper investigates how gender, race, class, religion and nationalism influence whose voice is heard or silenced within digital media. Drawing on postcolonial feminism, nationalism theory and digital media studies, this paper explores that digital platforms are not neutral spaces to express freely, rather it’s a site of power, surveillance and public judgements. Through the character of Jivan and Ifemelu, this paper argues how digital space can enable and restrict women’s agency. This digital space is not neither neutral nor equally accessible, rather it is a space that remains unequal, constructed and deeply structured by power. Ultimately, this paper offers a critical analysis of how contemporary literature exposes the limits of digital freedom and challenges the dominant nature of it, regarding voice, belonging and empowerment in the digital age.
Open Access
Queer wounds and the post-colonial condition: exploring trauma, identity, and resistance in a globalized world
(BRAC University, 2026-01) Trisha, Nadia Akter; Huq, Sabiha; Department of English and Humanities
This research study explains the themes of belonging, identity, queer feminist resistance and nationalism in a globalized world in The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy. The novel presents a wide range of characters who live on the margins of Indian society. Like these characters there are many people facing this situation from different countries of the world. Anjum is a transgender Muslim woman and Tilo is a political woman. Their lives are shaped by violence, exclusion, and resistance. Roy raises question of the idea of fixed national identity and exposes the divisions that exist in a country. Through the characters personal stories, which is formed by religion, caste, gender or sexuality, and politics shows various difficulties. This research paper uses queer feminist theory, trauma theory, and post-colonial theory to examine how the novel portrays the struggles of those who do not fit into the traditional society. The study shows that Roy connects personal identity with state violence. Anjum’s story challenges traditional gender roles, societal norms. It also highlights how queer individuals rejected from both nationalist and feminist spaces. Tilo’s journey reflects the trauma and identity crisis which is caused by political conflict, particularly in Kashmir. This study also draws comparisons with other literary works, including The Shadow Lines by Amitav Ghosh, Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie, Orlando by Virginia Woolf, Imagined Communities by Benedict Anderson and Kamala Das’s poem “The Dance of the Eunuchs”. These literary texts help to expand the understanding of nationalism and personal identity within a post-colonial context. These texts help us to rethink about the modern globalized world. By analyzing Roy’s novel, this research paper shows that literature can unveil many unsaid and hidden truths about society and power. It shows many unfair occurrences. It can unveil the bitter histories. The novel also suggests that healing is possible through the courage to challenge racial power. It emphasizes the importance of empathy, justice, and multi-cultural communities offering a powerful critique of rigid national and social structures in contemporary India. It also highlights the how the renowned authors and critics supports and objects about her point of view.
Open Access
From education to professional life: language proficiency and social adaptation challenges faced by Bangladeshi Madrasah students
(BRAC University, 2026-01) Hossain, Sahadat; Ahmed, Sabreena; Department of English and Humanities
The increasing demands of globalisation have made the English language a gatekeeper for entering the professional world. Despite having opportunities to enter the job market, madrasah students face difficulties with English. The current study focuses on their English language learning, leaving a gap in understanding their communicative adaptations in the workplace. Thus, to address this gap, this study explores how Bangladeshi madrasah students experience their communicative challenges, how these challenges affect their social adaptation, and what coping strategies they use to overcome them. Employing a qualitative case study, this research captures the lived experiences of five Bangladeshi madrasah students working across multiple sectors through semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed using thematic analysis to identify the themes. The findings reveal that English-language education in madrasah is mostly exam-oriented and focuses only on reading and writing, leading participants to face challenges with spoken English, professional writing, formal norms, and accent-related insecurities, which sometimes hinder their professional interactions. Social adaptation challenges include interactions with the opposite gender and discrimination based on attire and in the job sector recruitment. However, participants have developed strategies such as self-directed learning using online tools, writing books and dictionaries, and becoming more flexible in adapting to secular settings. This study recommends curriculum reforms for CLT and provides teacher training to better prepare madrasah students for the professional environment. The findings make a significant contribution to understanding employability, educational equality, and the gatekeeping role of English in a postcolonial context.
Open Access
Factors influencing vocabulary development among Bangla-English bilingual children in an urban Bangladeshi context
(BRAC University, 2026-01) Samiha, Ramisha Anjum; Sultana, Asifa; Department of English and Humanities
This study aims to highlight the factors that influence the expressive and receptive vocabulary development among the bilingual Bangla and English-speaking urban children. This paper adapts a quantitative correlational analysis to examine how social, biological, environmental, and parental variables can shape children’s vocabulary knowledge. Another important aspect of this study is to reveal the reasons behind imbalanced vocabulary acquisition in two languages in a bilingual setting. To conduct the study, the researcher has selected 143 participants who are bilingual and aged between 2 and 3 years old. A parental demographic report has been used along with the Communicative Development Inventories (CDIs). A statistical analysis has been done to establish the correlation of participants’ vocabulary score with several factors found from parental demographic reports. Overall, the findings indicated that societal, habitual and developmental factors are the key variables that differentiate the vocabulary outcomes among children.
Open Access
Parental involvement in English language learning in rural areas of Bangladesh
(BRAC University, 2025) Sultana, Nur E Afrin; Amin, Md Al; Department of English and Humanities
This study explored how rural Bangladesh parents involve in English learning journey of their children. Effective English skills have great significance to success in advanced learning and better employment opportunity throughout the world. However, it is difficult to impart English as skillfully in Bangladesh's underprivileged village environments. This is because most parents themselves do not have much institutional education; they lack financial stability, and they simply do not understand how to assist their children with a comparatively complex subject like English. The main objective of this research was to explore factors that stand against for parents to engage in their children’s education particularly in case of English. While many studies point out the importance of parental help in general, there are not so many that have been focused on how they help with a foreign language such as English, which most parents are themselves unable to speak or even understand. An in-depth, qualitative research approach was used for this study which involved conducting twelve interviews with parents whose children are enrolled in secondary school (high school) in semi-urban and rural Bangladesh. Specifically, they were asked regarding the types of help they provide, difficulties they encounter in engaging in their children’s education, their individual ideas and perception about English, and the steps they would aspire to take with an aim to help their children. Findings show that parents help in many ways mainly based on their own educational background. Parents with limited or no formal education mostly helped by making sure children finished homework, reading to them, and giving overall encouragement. They most often reported that they could not do anything else as they had a "lack of knowledge" or were "illiterate" in English. Parents who had attended secondary school, however, were able to give more direct academic support, to help with grammar and spelling errors. In short, the study highlights the fact that while parents really do believe English is essential in their children's future lives, their ability to help is greatly negated by their own ability and lack of proper guidance or materials where they live. These results are important for educators and education policy makers because they imply the value of uncomplicated, focused, and practical parent participation programs that can have an impact on enhancing English achievement among rural students.

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