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Expert questions govt handling of teachers’ issue

Published

5 years ago

2021/07/23

After 16 months of school closure, with more than 50% of students not having had any form of continuous education, it was not advisable or morally correct to hold exams, Dr. Sujata N. Gamage, Senior Research Fellow, LIRNEasia and Co-Coordinator, Education Forum Sri Lanka told The Island yesterday.

She said that each examination should be assessed for its purpose and criticality. Whilst they endorsed the striking teachers claim for higher wages, what they wanted to highlight was the lack of trust and respect shown towards teachers by authorities.

“The latest is a news item which said that the Ministry has established a programme which calls on teachers and principals to issue weekly reports after evaluating students and appoints education instructors to supervise teacher performance on a regular basis. This kind of scrutiny on teachers is totally unnecessary and unacceptable. Teachers have been reaching out to students on their own since March 2020 without being recognized, rewarded or guided by the authorities,” the Senior Research Fellow said.

Dr. Gamage said that the education Forum was pleased to note that the vaccination of teachers was in progress, teachers need to be appreciated and motivated if they were to bring the children up to the required standard after a long break in their education.

“We urge that the Ministry to take the following action without delay to rectify the situation: recognise teachers for their initiatives during the past 16 months, compensate them immediately for additional costs borne by them during the last 18 months in carrying out distance education and paid a monthly allowance for future costs and trust the teachers to do their job.”

The government provided teachers with curricula including expected learning outcomes and teaching guides and 50% of teachers were trained at National Colleges of Education and the others were graduates.

Dr Gamage said Ministry should not dictate how they should teach and they should be judged on the performance of their students.

“The stated purpose of the Grade 5 Scholarship examination is to select students to award scholarships, but the exam has expanded since 1995 as an assessment of learning by all students. It is time to get the exam back to its original intention and mode. Grades 6-9 is a time for activity-based learning without pressure to remember facts for examination. Covid is an opportunity to do away with any form of examination for this age group. The GCE O/L examination is not as critical for Grades 10-11, except for moving onto a popular school. The exam should be postponed to 2022 and travelling long distance for schooling at this time should be discouraged. The GCE A/L examination is the most critical examination for students in Grades 12-13. Every effort should be made to give students adequate time and equal opportunity for preparation,” she said. (RK)

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Sun directly overhead Kalpitiya, Talawa, Sinharagama, Galkadawala, Nachchaduwa, Padikaramaduwa, Gomarankalla and Verugal about 12.10 noon today (01)

Published

2 hours ago

2026/09/1

Priyan

The sun is going to be directly over the latitudes of Sri Lanka from 28th of August to 07th of September due to its apparent southward relative motion.

The nearest places of Sri Lanka over which the sun is overhead today (01) are Kalpitiya, Talawa, Sinharagama, Galkadawala,
Nachchaduwa, Padikaramaduwa, Gomarankalla and Verugal about 12.10 noon.

News

SJB asks what Speaker intended to do about allegations against CJ

Published

4 hours ago

2026/09/1

Sahan Weerasooriya

… stresses need for action if claims were proved false

Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Dayasiri Jayasekera has sought a clarification from Speaker Dr. Jagath Wickremaratne regarding several allegations against Chief Justice Preethi Padman Surasena, in Parliament, recently.

In a letter dated 31 August, Jayasekera has asked the Speaker whether he received any documentary evidence from MPs in support of the allegations at issue. The SJB MP has also inquired about the steps taken by the Speaker regarding the allegations and whether the issue had been taken up with the relevant agencies authorised to probe the assets of the CJ and members of his family.

MP Jayasekera confirmed that he had raised the issue with the Speaker, following the accusations relating to the high profile X-Press Pearl case, which received significant public attention in the recent past.

The Kurunegala District MP has also asked the Speaker whether the latter contemplated taking action in case the allegations were proved false to ensure that the dignity of the Chief Justice and the judiciary was safeguarded.

Among the issues raised by MP Jayasekera are the acquisition of valuable property in Colombo by the CJ’s son, the circumstances in which he was able to procure the property, as well as accusations regarding the CJ’s birth certificate, marriage certificate and birth certificates of his children.

News

Navy Chief attends strategic-level discussions in Delhi

Published

4 hours ago

2026/09/1

Sahan Weerasooriya

Navy Chief Vice Admiral Damian Fernando held a series of strategic-level discussions with senior Indian defence and military officials during a three-day official visit to New Delhi. He returned on Sunday (30).

Navy Headquarters said that the two sides discussed ways to further strengthen maritime security cooperation between the two Navies in support of security in the Indian Ocean region. They also exchanged views on expanding training opportunities and capacity-building programmes, as well as other areas of bilateral importance.

During his visit to New Delhi, Vice Admiral Fernando also held official discussions with India’s Chief of Defence Staff, General N.S. Raja Subramani, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh and Vice Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit and defence industry representatives. Discussions at these meetings focused on bilateral defence cooperation, joint training programmes, and opportunities to enhance air and maritime cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region.

As part of efforts to further expand cooperation in naval training and professional development, Vice Admiral Fernando also met Vice Admiral Sameer Saxena, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of India’s Southern Naval Command, at its headquarters in Kochi, Kerala. The two sides discussed existing naval training exchange programmes and opportunities for introducing and expanding further training initiatives. The meeting followed the Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy’s visit to INS Dronacharya, the Indian Navy’s training establishment where he previously completed the Long Gunnery and Missile Course.