By K. M. Kaisarul Islam and Rowzat Tahania
Fall 2025 Events
Fall 2025 Orientation
On September 25, 2025, the batches 243, 251, and 252 of the Department of English and Humanities organized the orientation program to welcome the incoming BA and MA students of the Fall 2025 term. With the theme “Weaving Stories”, the event was constituted of inspiring speeches from the distinguished faculty members of DEH, including Master’s Coordinator and the host for the event, Assistant Professor Nadia Rahman, the Head of the Department, Ms. Arifa Ghani Rahman, the Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities, Professor Kaiser Haq, and Vice-Chancellor and former Special Advisor to the Board of Trustees, Professor Shamsad Mortuza. As for the students’ contribution, the event’s speaker, alumna Tasfia Ahmed Mohima shared her journey with ULAB, followed by performances by K.M. Kaisarul Islam and Meraj Hossain Shahin, and brief speeches by BA fresher Ikra Akter and MA fresher Nafiza Nawar Nishu. The faculty members also participated in making the occasion more fun and lively through a “Rapid Fire” game by DEH lecturers Mehek Chowdhury and Vincent Dip Gomes, and a cover of “Bhalo Achi, Bhalo Theko” by DEH Lecturer and Advisor to the English Zone, Neha Ghose. The event ended with a final speech from Ms. Nadia Rahman and a group photo session.
Graduate Seminar Fall 2025
On October 18, 2025, the department arranged the Graduate Student Seminar for Fall 2025. Papers were presented by ten students from the Master’s tracks of Literature and Cultural Studies, Applied Linguistics and TESOL, and Literature and Creative Writing. The presenters were: Hasan Abdul Basit (Batch 252) with his paper, “Ideology: A Temporal Dissemination” focused on ideological objectives and the Marxist tradition; Most. Nusrat Jahan Kabita (Batch 252) with her paper titled “From Memory to Meaning Making: Revealing Cognitive Demand in Narrative Writing through Bloom’s Taxonomy”, which was about Bloom’s Taxonomy as a framework for teaching and assessment in order to improve lesson design for educators; Tabeen Siddiki (Batch 252) with his paper titled “Why Women Fight Harder: Gender-Based Struggles and Female Agency in The Legend of Korra”, talking about how female heroes are subjected to constant scrutiny; Mirza Ahmed Nuhash (Batch 251) with his paper “Émile Zola’s Naturalism on the Stage and the Characterization of Modern Movies”, based on the key concepts of Naturalism; M. A. Rahat with his paper “An Observation Study of First Language Acquisition of a Bangladeshi Child”, which was based on a quantitative research method conducted through observation of a toddler; Rudaiba Mahbub (Batch 243)with her paper titled “Myth and Migration: Folklore and the Construction of Translational Identities in Amitav Ghosh’s Gun Island”, focused on themes of migration, displacement, exile, and cultural exchange in Ghosh’s novel; Farzana Mir (Batch 232) with her paper on “Syntactic Description”, Tasmim Bashira Binth Arman on “Understanding Gender, Exoticism, and Political Agency through Shakespeare’s Cleopatra”, demonstrating how words and phrases are structured and how sentences can be broken into constituent parts; Fahim Ibrahim (Batch 243) with his paper, “Revisiting the Ethical Consideration of Using Generative AI in English Language Teaching”, focused on issues of data authenticity and the
growing use of AI for academic purposes; Rubaba Sarwar (Batch 243)’s presentation from the course on her paper, titled “The Cultural Economy of Climate Dread in Gun Island”. To conclude, the students held a Q&A session based on their papers, with feedback and appreciation from the faculty members.
Exploring the Power of Small Words: Seminar on Discourse Particles in Mro
The Department of English and Humanities and the ULAB English Zone organized a seminar on “Discourse Particles in Mro: A Descriptive Analysis” on October 26, 2025. The seminar was facilitated by Ms. Farhin Rahman Rubaiyath who had recently graduated from Independent University, Bangladesh. This seminar based on the overlooked discoursed particles in a language, examined through their significance in the Mro language. Ms. Rubaiyath shared her key research questions, methodology, and findings with the attendees. The event concluded with questions from many of these attendees regarding Ms. Rubaiyath’s research.
Zia Haider Rahman: In Conversation with Kaiser Haq
On November 6, 2025, the Department of English and Humanities organized an event featuring British author Zia Haider Rahman and the Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities, Professor Kaiser Haq. This was a conversation between the two keynote speakers about Mr. Rahman’s book In Light of What We Know. The talk revolved around Mr. Rahman’s career, upbringing and life experiences, and the role these experiences play in his work. The discussion also delved into Mr. Rahman’s narrative style and the economics surrounding contemporary literary fiction. Mr. Rahman read a section from his book to provide a glimpse into this compelling story for the attendees. The event ended with various intellectual questions ranging from topics including the book’s reception, the author’s use of literary references, and his thoughts on the geopolitical landscapes.
Memorial: Professor Syed Manzoorul Islam (1951-2025)
Professors, faculty members, distinguished guests, students, relatives, and the staff of University of Liberal Arts came together on November 7, 2025, in memory of the late Professor Syed Manzoorul Islam. The event started with a message from the HoD, Ms. Arifa Ghani Rahman regarding Prof. Islam’s many contributions at ULAB, as well as his kind nature. This was followed by prayers offered by Assistant Professor of the School of Business, Dr. Kazi Md. Tarique. Prof. Islam’s aunt, Ambassador Nasim Ferdous, also attended the event and shared her fond memories of Prof. Islam. His achievements, charismatic personality, philosophies, and memories were talked about and shared between his colleagues, including the VC and the former Special Advisor to the BoT, Professor Shamsad Mortuza, Acting Vice-Chancellor Prof. Jude William R. Genilo, the Registrar, Lt. Col. Md. Foyzul Islam (Retd)., and many more, along with a poetic tribute from Prof. Kaiser Haq (Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities). His friends and colleagues outside ULAB had also joined to reflect on his memories, such as Prof. Niaz Zaman and Prof. Fakrul Alam. His students paid their tribute through videos that were played during the memorial, including one from Summer Distinguished Visiting Professor, Dr. Azfar Hussain, and a reading of Prof. Islam’s short story The Weapon by alumni Quazi Farhina, Ismat Murshid Khan, and Marzuk Ahmed Khan Mojlish. The staff members Mr. Liton, Mr. Amirul, and Mr. Tutul, and Prof. Islam’s chauffeur, Mr. Abbas, also shared fond memories of him. The memorial concluded with a tribute song by Prof. Islam’s former student, Dr. Nira Rahman, and a vote of thanks from Ms. Arifa Ghani Rahman.
Scholars Program Workshop on Digital Humanities as Method and Critique
A workshop titled “Digital Humanities as Method and Critique” on the use of technology and digital media for the benefit of the humanities was organized by the Department of English and Humanities on November 11, 2025. The workshop was facilitated by DEH Lecturer Oliur Rahman Sun for the students of the Scholars Program. Mr. Sun proposed thought-provoking questions, talked about the usage of AI in the field of humanities, and presented solutions by showcasing methods through which English and the humanities can be navigated through technology and digital softwares and platforms, such as the concept of archiving writings. Overall, Mr. Sun demonstrated how the students can be creative in using the digital media for their own advantage and the benefit of the arts and the humanities.
Six DEH Final Term Student Workshops
Every term, the Department of English and Humanities caters six workshops to the students of ENG 4208, ENG 4298, ENG 4299, and the MA students to prepare them for life after graduation. Starting with “CV and Cover Letter Writing” on November 13, 2025, facilitated by Assistant Professor and MA coordinator Ms. Nadia Rahman, the first workshop was about what should be the content inside the students’ CVs and recommendation letters. Ms. Rahman talked about CVs and cover letters that can be strengthened through the mention of the applicants’ roles and responsibilities throughout their work experiences. The second workshop was titled “Recommendation Letters”, which took place on November 20, 2025, facilitated again by Ms. Rahman, talked about the importance of genuine and personalized recommendation letters, and how students should approach their referees. Thirdly, Ms. Rahman also facilitated the workshop “Job Hunting and Interview Skills” on November 27, 2025, where she discussed where to look for jobs, the importance of networking, and how to prepare for interviews by researching and thinking about the answers ahead of time. The fourth workshop that she facilitated was “Presentation Skills” on December 4, 2025, where she focused on the key elements of a good presentation, including proper time management and delivering their messages through body language and the visuals of the slides (font size, colour, etc.) The fifth workshop, which took place on 11 December, 2025, was titled “Writing Statements of Purpose”, and was facilitated by Mr. Raihan Rahman, who is a PhD Candidate in English Literature, Department of English, University of Massachusetts Amherst, USA. Mr. Rahman explained the essentials of a Statement of Purpose if a student wants to study abroad. He discussed how a student’s SoP should precisely highlight their academic goals, intellectual capability, and motivations. The final workshop in the series took place on December 18, 2025, with the title “What’s Next?”, facilitated by Ms. Arifa Ghani Rahman. Ms. Rahman mainly highlighted the importance of postgraduate studies and how to seek out opportunities. These six workshops are designed by the department to help students who are in their final term or doing their Masters.
Panel Discussion on Language Documentation and Linguistics Research
The Department of English and Humanities organized a 3-day workshop, followed by a panel discussion, with Senior Linguistics Fellow at the Department of English and Humanities, ULAB, and Associate Professor of Linguistics, Dartmouth College, USA, Dr. David A. Peterson and other renowned linguists. The workshop on “The Art of Language Documentation and The Role of Technology in Linguistics Research” involved practical sessions on training the students in language documentation methods and ethical issues that are raised during said documentation. Following this, the panel discussion, moderated by DEH Lecturer Oliur Rahman Sun, invited guests Samar M Soren (Founder & Head, Language Resource Hub), Dr. Mashrur Imtiaz (University of Dhaka), Dr. Asifa Sultana (BRAC University), Nukraching Marma (Director, KNSI-Bandarban), and Rani Ukhengching Marma (Mong Circle Chief’s Representative, Khagrachhari). After a fruitful session full of insights from the academics, the event concluded with a speech from the Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities, Mr. Kaiser Haq, and a certificate giving ceremony for the participants of the workshop.
Meet the Poet: Shaheen Dil
On November 30, 2025, the Department of English and Humanities hosted a conversation featuring Bangladeshi-American poet Dr. Shaheen Dil in conversation with Dr. Mushira Habib, Assistant Professor, DEH. In the event titled “Meet the Poet: Shaheen Dil”, Ms. Dil talked about her upbringing in Bangladesh and her life later in the United States. Her experiences of both the Bengali and Western culture shaped her literary works, and she demonstrated that by reading pieces from her book Letters to My Younger Self, which chronicled some of her earliest memories in Old Dhaka. Before and after the talk, students from the Department of English and Humanities, K.M. Kaisarul Islam and Mahdi Tanisha Mahmud read poems from Ms. Dil’s books The Boat-Maker’s Art and Acts of Deference respectively. The event concluded with a Q&A session, speeches by HoD Ms. Arifa Ghani Rahman and the Dean of the School of English and Humanities Prof. Kaiser Haq, and a vote of thanks from Ms. Rahman.
Reading Carnivore
The Department of English and Humanities organized the event “Reading Carnivore” on December 11, 2025 as an online discussion of the author Dr. K. Anis Ahmed’s book Carnivore. The conversation involved Dr. Ahmed recounting his experiences and inspirations behind writing the book, followed by analyses and interpretations from discussants Azeema Anhar, Mahdia Tanisha Mahmud, Raisa Anan, and Tabeen Siddiki. The topics of the discussion included the geopolitical elements of the book, the tone and narrative style of the text, capitalism as an allegory, immigrant experiences, desensitisation to violence, etc. The discussion was attended by many students as well as faculty members of DEH, with Lecturer Oliur Rahman Sun moderating the event. The event concluded with a note from the Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities, Prof. Kaiser Haq, and a vote of thanks from HoD, Ms. Arifa Ghani Rahman.
Scholars Showcase Advanced Learning
On December 18, 2025, the Department of English and Humanities organized “Scholars Showcase Advanced Learning” for the Scholars Program students to present their research projects implementing the concepts that they learned throughout their course. The event was attended by the Scholars Program committee members, faculty members, and presenters Adrita Chowdhury, Ansa Tasfiha Suhi, Husnul Jannath, Raisa Anan, Rushnan Aman, and Yusuf Abdullah Tokee. Ms. Anam began the series of presentations with her paper “Conceptualizing Bangladeshi English through Kachru’s Circles and the
Dynamic Model”, in which she talks about how Bangladeshi English exists due to colonialism and how this language is being nativized in South Asia. Ms. Chowdhury presented her paper “Understanding World Englishes: The Three Concentric Circles Model by Braj Kachru”, where she talked about Kachru’s classification of global English, and the concepts of the Inner, Outer, and Expanding Circles. Ms. Anan presented “Scopophilia in Hollywood: A Comparative Study of Vertigo, Wonder Woman, and Barbie based on Laura Mulvey’s Theory.” Here, she talks about how women are portrayed as visual objects of spectacle in mainstream media, especially for the heterosexual male gaze. After her, Mr. Abdullah talks about Paulo Freire’s significance in education during his presentation on “Paulo Freire’s Critical Pedagogy and Language Education”. Ms. Jannath presents “Artificial Intelligence for Automated Writing Evaluation (AWE) in TESOL: Effectiveness and Challenges”, talking about the benefits of AWE tools while also acknowledging ethical concerns. Finally, the series was concluded with Ms. Suhi’s paper Why Materials Design Matters?” Ms. Suhi talks about key points of materials design for texts. The showcase concluded with a closing statement from the Advisor of the Scholars Program, Dr. Md. Mahadhi Hasan.
Chill Day with Board Games: Rethinking Literary Engagement through Play
The Department of English and Humanities hosted “Chill Day with Board Games” before the final examinations on December 18, 2025, as a way to find relief from the exam stress, while also maintaining engagement with literature. The games included two games made by DEH student Irene Saha (Batch 233), called TRotAM (acronym of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner) and Bookopoly, as well as popularly known games including Pictionary and Scrabble. This turned into a humorous and lively break for both the BA and MA students who participated and took a moment to both learn and relax.
BA and MA Theses Defense and Commencement Fall 2025
The final event organized by the Department of English and Humanities showcased the BA and MA Defense Theses and the Commencement of the batch who graduated in Fall 2025. The event anchor was Anka Nizwa of batch (241). The Head of the Department, Ms. Arifa Ghani Rahman congratulated all the graduates and wished them luck for their bright futures. This was followed by speeches from the Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities, Prof. Kaiser Haq, current Vice-Chancellor of ULAB and former Special Advisor to the Board of Trustees, Prof. Shamsad Mortuza, and Professor Mahmud Hasan Khan, all of them highlighting the ups and downs of the educational journey, and the doors it opens for future opportunities. The event speaker, PhD candidate at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and a ULAB gold medalist alumnus, Mr. Raihan Rahman, shared his journey with ULAB and how it had positively affected his future prospects and life overall. Following his speech, the cultural segment opened with a recitation of Kazi Nazrul Islam’s Bidrohi by Ayesha Azharul, musical performances by Sumiya Sikder Easha, and an interactive word association game involving audience participation. The occasion, appropriately themed “Changing Hues”, encapsulated the transformation of the graduates from students to young professionals, prepared for a promising future ahead.
Spring 2026 Events
Curriculum Integration Forum
The first of the two forums for the DEH Curriculum Integration for Spring 2026, on the theme “Neurodivergence in Linguistics, Literature, and Language Teaching”, was hosted on February 5, 2026, by the Department of English and Humanities. The speaker for the event was Dr. Mushira Habib, a scholar-activist and a lecturer in the Department of English and Humanities. Followed by a brief introduction regarding Curriculum Integration by the HoD, Ms. Arifa Ghani Rahman, Dr. Habib spoke about neurodivergence in literature through five key observations. She talked about how throughout history neurodivergent characters have been portrayed as fools, mademen, and prophetic. She also urged the students to read literary texts critically through a neurodivergent perspective, one of the methods being reading about experiences of mental illness and suicidal ideation. Finally, she added that unconventional participation within classrooms can have a meaningful impact.
Workshop: Fostering Respectful, Inclusive, and Diverse (RID) Classrooms
On April 9, 2026, Dr. Nira Rahman (Lecturer, Educational Design and Student Engagement Arts Teaching Innovation, Faculty of Arts The University of Melbourne, Australia) facilitated an online workshop on how to make learning environments respectful, inclusive and diverse. The discussion included the concepts of positionality and inclusivity, and how society shapes people’s knowledge and cultural lenses which allow them to perceive the world in a certain way. Dr. Rahman explained how we can and should foster safe classrooms where we can be empathetic towards people of all identities and cultural backgrounds. Ultimately, this was an insightful session on the necessity of safe environments for learning and teaching and how to create these spaces.
Book Discussion – “Lines on A Drying Map: Communities, Conflict, Currents, and Cli-Fi”
During the celebration of Earth Day 2026 at ULAB, a book discussion was organized by the Department of English and Humanities on April 21, 2026, the second day of the 3-day celebration. It was titled “Lines on A Drying Map: Communities, Conflict, Currents, and Cli-Fi”, where the discussants talked about the current climate crisis in the world, with a special focus on issues regarding water, technology, geopolitics, and marginalized voices. The discussion was led primarily by four speakers: Assistant Professor Dr. Farisa Khalid, Raisa Anan (BA in English), Ruxmini Reckvana Q Choudhury (MA in English), and Lecturer Nusrat Tajkia, with Lecturer Oliur Sun as the moderator. After an inaugural speech by Vice-Chancellor Shamsad Mortuza, the discussion was started by Dr. Khalid on Virginia Woolf’s novel To The Lighthouse. Dr. Khalid mentioned how, through the perspective of the protagonist Nancy, readers can see a blend between nature and the human world, demonstrated by the child’s play in the tide pool. Following this, Ms. Anan talked about the book Parable of the Sower written by Octavia E. Butler, and the effect of technology and its increasing demand for fresh water in data centres, which is destroying habitable land. Next, Ms. Choudhury talked about John Lanchester’s The Wall and shared her perspective on how climate change and natural disasters harm the land, turning it barren, raising water levels, or displacing people from their homes. The series of discussion was concluded by Ms. Tajkia, who selected Mahasweta Devi’s Jol (Water) to bring up the issue of dams, who gets to control them, and the voices of marginalized communities that are silenced regarding it. The event was concluded by questions and observations from faculty members, such as from the HoD, Ms. Arifa Ghani Rahman, and the Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities, Professor Kaiser Haq.
13th Curriculum Integration Program
A term’s worth of efforts and knowledge gained by the students cumulated at the 13th Curriculum Integration Program for the Department of English and Humanities on April 23, 2026. Handmade posters and art pieces were showcased outside PD 108, with a viewing of audiovisual projects, presentations, and performances by the students inside. They applied the knowledge from course materials and texts to real-world scenarios, and tried to portray that from the lens of neurodivergence to go with the theme. Projects from a number of different courses were exhibited. After the showcase came the prize giving ceremony, which proceeded after a short, inspiring speech by the Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities, Professor Kaiser Haq, acknowledging the students’ hard-work. The second runner-up of the exhibition was Nafisa Anjum Alvi from “Postmodernism in Literature”, with her project being an interactive game titled “This is Catch-22”. The first runner-up was the group “Mind Lock” from the course “Restoration and 18th Century Literature”, with a structural poster presentation titled “Cube of Spleen”. Lastly, the champion was the group “Mayer Dua” from “Sciolinguistics”, winning the CI exhibition with their short documentary Plan Cancel.
