Features
Imperative for Academics to engage the public in times of crisis
By Samarakoon
A couple of weeks ago, I attended the UN conference on Sustainable Development Goals at the University of Hull, in the United Kingdom. The theme of the conference was ‘Just Transition for Sustainable Development,’ and the popular discussions were spearheaded by natural science scholars who proudly presented new research—funded by private companies—on innovative technology for renewable energy.
During the discussions, a few social science scholars raised a significant question: How can new knowledge on innovative technology for the energy crisis be distributed evenly, especially when the research is funded by private sector companies aiming for surplus profit? The majority of natural science scholars at the conference presumed that policymakers should take responsibility to ensure that technological solutions are delivered equitably. They argued that this could only be achieved within democratic systems, leading me to pose this question to the audience: “If democracy thrives in a given context, equitable distribution of resources may be possible, but what would happen in a scenario where democracy is dying or withering away?” In response, Prof. Julian Agyeman of Tufts University, USA, offered a brilliant answer: “Collective effort is necessary to restore democracy and uphold it for social justice.” Prof. Agyeman’s answer prompted me to think about the academic role, particularly in the social sciences, in raising the public’s collective consciousness to restore democracy for social justice. This Kuppi article explores the gap in Sri Lankan higher education and the need to organize collective efforts or foster collective consciousness for social justice in the current crisis.
Universities and public engagement
Contemporary academia sees universities shifting from open intellectual discourse to a more business-oriented model, affecting their role in propagating universal knowledge. Ronaldo Munck, Helen McQuillan, and Joanna Ozarowska emphasize the growing importance of universities’ public engagement during economic austerity. However, capitalist systems’ evolution has limited universities’ capacity to fully embrace this role in public engagement, as discussed in “Higher Education and Civil Engagement: Comparative Perspectives” (2012).
The term “public engagement” in the academic context refers to universities’ active involvement and interaction with the broader community. This engagement entails a multifaceted process that encompasses both social and spatial interpretations of societal realities. Moreover, it plays a vital role in elevating and organizing political consciousness among the public, fostering a discerning evaluation of social, economic, and political environments.
The dilemma of organizing collective consciousness to restore democracy has been discussed in the Kuppi series, with attention to the emergence of social-economic disparities that threaten the democratic governing system of the country. For instance, Shamala Kumar, in her Kuppi article (08/11/2022)), highlighted We, the public, including academics, must remain vigilant about the current crisis situation in Sri Lanka, which poses a threat to democracy. The most viable and imperative solution is to reinstate democracy through collective endeavors, as advocated by Prof. Julian Agyeman referenced at the outset of this article.the disparity of crisis impacts on the public. She cited an everyday example of witnessing the struggles of women during her drive to the university: “As I drive to work each day, a luxury that I can still afford, I regularly see women with huge stacks of firewood, balanced on their heads, walking home having taken on the burden placed on them.” More recently, in an article titled ‘A People’s University and a National Crisis’ (04/07/2023), Shamala presented a self-critique of the academic’s role in the current crisis, touching upon academic engagement with labour reforms.
The labour reforms proposed by the government essentially aim to exploit workers’ rights and labour, with provisions to extend the working day to 16 hours from the current eight hours per day, with a one hour break, and maintain wages without a minimum standard. Sixteen hours of work per day in any industry, without the protection of a minimum wage policy, amounts to serious laboir exploitation and rights violation. Imagine the garment industry, where women comprise the majority of workers, workers sitting in small chairs, bending their heads down, and pushing the sewing machine pad for 16 hours, enduring the unbearable conditions of labour they face. Considering that Spain has legalized day-offs for period pain, one may question whether these Sri Lankan women in garment industry can afford such reprieve, or whether they will be asked to work for 16 hours per day instead.
A significant event was the realization of a statement signed by 116 academics that expressed a critical evaluation of the government’s prospective labour reforms. The statement was published in a public space (https://island.lk/labour-reforms-in-time-of-great-crisis/).
Missing threads in academic work
How have we acknowledged and addressed the issue of social-economic disparity in the distribution of resources under the theme of free education? How much attention have the university quality assurance programmes paid to this inequality in access to ‘free education’? To what extent do university curricula reflect social-economic disparities? As academics, our inquiry should focus on identifying whether university modules address labour exploitations.
Sri Lanka recently celebrated 200 years of the Tea-economy. How many graduates have hailed from the Tea-plantation sector in the last two centuries? Narayan Punniyaselvan, a graduate of the Colombo University, in Political Science, was the first in Glassaugh Estate, Nanu Oya, to obtain a university degree in 2022. The Tea-plantation sector assumes a pivotal role by contributing substantially to the country’s surplus labour, thereby generating essential economic output and government revenues, which, in turn, support the maintenance of the country’s free education system. However, it is noteworthy that despite their considerable contributions through economic inputs and indirect taxation, surplus labourers from the plantation sector have seldom benefited from the advantages of the free education system. How have we, as academics, examined such disparities?
Academics in the social sciences are increasingly instructed by the University Grants Commission (UGC) to produce ‘skilled labour’ to be integrated into the labour market. For years, the ‘unemployability’ of social science graduates has been highlighted in the media and within policy circles. It has been argued that these graduates end up in public service, which, in turn, has been defined as a mal-efficient structure. Many projects have been introduced since under various funded programmes to improve the skills of social science undergraduates, such as computer literacy and communication in the English language.
I do not deny the reality that social science graduates lack the aforementioned ‘marketable’ skills, but my question is whether all these programmes resolve the problem? Where can these graduates go with these skills? What is the scale of the Sri Lankan labour market? According to the Department of Census and Statistics (2022), in the first quarter of 2022, the total number of employed persons in Sri Lanka was estimated to be 8.4 million, among whom about 47.1% were in the service sector, 27.9% in the industry sector, and 25% in the agriculture sector. Despite efforts to improve the skills of social science graduates, through various programmes, the limited options provided by the labour market pose a challenge for these graduates. A critical aspect to explore pertains to how academics in the field of social sciences, who are tasked with implementing the UGC recommendations on skilled labour, perceive and integrate these intricate social realities into their pedagogical practices.
It is important to clarify that my intention is not to suggest that Sri Lanka’s higher education system completely disregards current social issues. Rather, my inquiry revolves around the adequacy of their engagement and proactive efforts in addressing these pressing concerns. Specifically, I seek to ascertain whether their initiatives and actions are sufficient to effectively address and contribute to the resolution of these matters.
The way to go
Organizing public consciousness holds significant political implications, wherein academics play a pivotal role despite the challenges faced by the current Sri Lankan academia. A historical example that exemplifies the collective action of academics and the public in securing the right to education is the march from Galle to Colombo in 2012. Similarly, academics bear the responsibility to unite in collective efforts to advocate for the rights of the public, particularly labourers in various industries across the country. This includes issuing statements and raising public awareness about the potential risks and hazards pertaining to prospective labour rights. In my observation, academics are struggling to connect with public consciousness due to their workloads, time commitments, and ethnic and class consciousness. However, if academics cannot engage with the public, their survival will also be questionable in this crisis.
We, the public, including academics, must remain vigilant about the current crisis situation in Sri Lanka, which poses a threat to democracy. The most viable and imperative solution is to reinstate democracy through collective endeavors, as advocated by Prof. Julian Agyeman referenced at the outset of this article. Central to this restorative process is the revitalization of university public engagement, a notion that Sri Lankan higher education institutions must actively embrace. This involves enhancing the curriculum’s content to reflect the complexities of social reality, fostering open spaces for public discussions, reevaluating historical movements to garner fresh insights, and critically scrutinizing government policies with despotic undertones, particularly those pertaining to labour exploitation. By recommitting to these active and participatory practices, academia can significantly contribute to the preservation and advancement of democracy in Sri Lanka, fostering a more informed and engaged citizenry capable of collectively addressing the challenges facing the nation.
(The author is attached to the Department of Public Policy, University of Ruhuna)
Kuppi is a politics and pedagogy happening on the margins of the lecture hall that parodies, subverts, and simultaneously reaffirms social hierarchies.
by Kaushalya Perera
Time has, by and large, stood still in the business of academic staff recruitment to state universities. Qualifications have proliferated and evolved to be more interdisciplinary, but our selection processes and evaluation criteria are unchanged since at least the late 1990s. But before I delve into the problems, I will describe the existing processes and schemes of recruitment. The discussion is limited to UGC-governed state universities (and does not include recruitment to medical and engineering sectors) though the problems may be relevant to other higher education institutions (HEIs).
How recruitment happens currently in SL state universities
Academic ranks in Sri Lankan state universities can be divided into three tiers (subdivisions are not discussed).
* Lecturer (Probationary)
– recruited with a four-year undergraduate degree. A tiny step higher is the Lecturer (Unconfirmed), recruited with a postgraduate degree but no teaching experience.
* A Senior Lecturer can be recruited with certain postgraduate qualifications and some number of years of teaching and research.
* Above this is the professor (of four types), which can be left out of this discussion since only one of those (Chair Professor) is by application.
State universities cannot hire permanent academic staff as and when they wish. Prior to advertising a vacancy, approval to recruit is obtained through a mind-numbing and time-consuming process (months!) ending at the Department of Management Services. The call for applications must list all ranks up to Senior Lecturer. All eligible candidates for Probationary to Senior Lecturer are interviewed, e.g., if a Department wants someone with a doctoral degree, they must still advertise for and interview candidates for all ranks, not only candidates with a doctoral degree. In the evaluation criteria, the first degree is more important than the doctoral degree (more on this strange phenomenon later). All of this is only possible when universities are not under a ‘hiring freeze’, which governments declare regularly and generally lasts several years.
Problem type 1
– Archaic processes and evaluation criteria
Twenty-five years ago, as a probationary lecturer with a first degree, I was a typical hire. We would be recruited, work some years and obtain postgraduate degrees (ideally using the privilege of paid study leave to attend a reputed university in the first world). State universities are primarily undergraduate teaching spaces, and when doctoral degrees were scarce, hiring probationary lecturers may have been a practical solution. The path to a higher degree was through the academic job. Now, due to availability of candidates with postgraduate qualifications and the problems of retaining academics who find foreign postgraduate opportunities, preference for candidates applying with a postgraduate qualification is growing. The evaluation scheme, however, prioritises the first degree over the candidate’s postgraduate education. Were I to apply to a Faculty of Education, despite a PhD on language teaching and research in education, I may not even be interviewed since my undergraduate degree is not in education. The ‘first degree first’ phenomenon shows that universities essentially ignore the intellectual development of a person beyond their early twenties. It also ignores the breadth of disciplines and their overlap with other fields.
This can be helped (not solved) by a simple fix, which can also reduce brain drain: give precedence to the doctoral degree in the required field, regardless of the candidate’s first degree, effected by a UGC circular. The suggestion is not fool-proof. It is a first step, and offered with the understanding that any selection process, however well the evaluation criteria are articulated, will be beset by multiple issues, including that of bias. Like other Sri Lankan institutions, universities, too, have tribal tendencies, surfacing in the form of a preference for one’s own alumni. Nevertheless, there are other problems that are, arguably, more pressing as I discuss next. In relation to the evaluation criteria, a problem is the narrow interpretation of any regulation, e.g., deciding the degree’s suitability based on the title rather than considering courses in the transcript. Despite rhetoric promoting internationalising and inter-disciplinarity, decision-making administrative and academic bodies have very literal expectations of candidates’ qualifications, e.g., a candidate with knowledge of digital literacy should show this through the title of the degree!
Problem type 2 – The mess of badly regulated higher education
A direct consequence of the contemporary expansion of higher education is a large number of applicants with myriad qualifications. The diversity of degree programmes cited makes the responsibility of selecting a suitable candidate for the job a challenging but very important one. After all, the job is for life – it is very difficult to fire a permanent employer in the state sector.
Widely varying undergraduate degree programmes.
At present, Sri Lankan undergraduates bring qualifications (at times more than one) from multiple types of higher education institutions: a degree from a UGC-affiliated state university, a state university external to the UGC, a state institution that is not a university, a foreign university, or a private HEI aka ‘private university’. It could be a degree received by attending on-site, in Sri Lanka or abroad. It could be from a private HEI’s affiliated foreign university or an external degree from a state university or an online only degree from a private HEI that is ‘UGC-approved’ or ‘Ministry of Education approved’, i.e., never studied in a university setting. Needless to say, the diversity (and their differences in quality) are dizzying. Unfortunately, under the evaluation scheme all degrees ‘recognised’ by the UGC are assigned the same marks. The same goes for the candidates’ merits or distinctions, first classes, etc., regardless of how difficult or easy the degree programme may be and even when capabilities, exposure, input, etc are obviously different.
Similar issues are faced when we consider postgraduate qualifications, though to a lesser degree. In my discipline(s), at least, a postgraduate degree obtained on-site from a first-world university is preferable to one from a local university (which usually have weekend or evening classes similar to part-time study) or online from a foreign university. Elitist this may be, but even the best local postgraduate degrees cannot provide the experience and intellectual growth gained by being in a university that gives you access to six million books and teaching and supervision by internationally-recognised scholars. Unfortunately, in the evaluation schemes for recruitment, the worst postgraduate qualification you know of will receive the same marks as one from NUS, Harvard or Leiden.
The problem is clear but what about a solution?
Recruitment to state universities needs to change to meet contemporary needs. We need evaluation criteria that allows us to get rid of the dross as well as a more sophisticated institutional understanding of using them. Recruitment is key if we want our institutions (and our country) to progress. I reiterate here the recommendations proposed in ‘Considerations for Higher Education Reform’ circulated previously by Kuppi Collective:
* Change bond regulations to be more just, in order to retain better qualified academics.
* Update the schemes of recruitment to reflect present-day realities of inter-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary training in order to recruit suitably qualified candidates.
* Ensure recruitment processes are made transparent by university administrations.
Kaushalya Perera is a senior lecturer at the University of Colombo.
(Kuppi is a politics and pedagogy happening on the margins of the lecture hall that parodies, subverts, and simultaneously reaffirms social hierarchies.)
This week, too, the spotlight is on an outfit that has gained popularity, mainly through social media.
Last week we had MISTER Band in our scene, and on 10th February, Yellow Beatz – both social media favourites.
Talento is a seven-piece band that plays all types of music, from the ‘60s to the modern tracks of today.
The band has reached many heights, since its inception in 2012, and has gained recognition as a leading wedding and dance band in the scene here.
The members that makeup the outfit have a solid musical background, which comes through years of hard work and dedication
Their portfolio of music contains a mix of both western and eastern songs and are carefully selected, they say, to match the requirements of the intended audience, occasion, or event.
Although the baila is a specialty, which is inherent to this group, that originates from Moratuwa, their repertoire is made up of a vast collection of love, classic, oldies and modern-day hits.
The musicians, who make up Talento, are:
Prabuddha Geetharuchi:
Geilee Fonseka: Dynamic and charismatic vocalist
Prabuddha Geetharuchi: The main man behind the band Talento
(Vocalist/ Frontman). He is an avid music enthusiast and was mentored by a lot of famous musicians, and trainers, since he was a child. Growing up with them influenced him to take on western songs, as well as other music styles. A Peterite, he is the main man behind the band Talento and is a versatile singer/entertainer who never fails to get the crowd going.
Geilee Fonseka (Vocals):
A dynamic and charismatic vocalist whose vibrant stage presence, and powerful voice, bring a fresh spark to every performance. Young, energetic, and musically refined, she is an artiste who effortlessly blends passion with precision – captivating audiences from the very first note. Blessed with an immense vocal range, Geilee is a truly versatile singer, confidently delivering Western and Eastern music across multiple languages and genres.
Chandana Perera (Drummer):
His expertise and exceptional skills have earned him recognition as one of the finest acoustic drummers in Sri Lanka. With over 40 tours under his belt, Chandana has demonstrated his dedication and passion for music, embodying the essential role of a drummer as the heartbeat of any band.
Harsha Soysa:
(Bassist/Vocalist). He a chorister of the western choir of St. Sebastian’s College, Moratuwa, who began his musical education under famous voice trainers, as well as bass guitar trainers in Sri Lanka. He has also performed at events overseas. He acts as the second singer of the band
Udara Jayakody:
(Keyboardist). He is also a qualified pianist, adding technical flavour to Talento’s music. His singing and harmonising skills are an extra asset to the band. From his childhood he has been a part of a number of orchestras as a pianist. He has also previously performed with several famous western bands.
Aruna Madushanka:
(Saxophonist). His proficiciency in playing various instruments, including the saxophone, soprano saxophone, and western flute, showcases his versatility as a musician, and his musical repertoire is further enhanced by his remarkable singing ability.
Prashan Pramuditha:
(Lead guitar). He has the ability to play different styles, both oriental and western music, and he also creates unique tones and patterns with the guitar..
The JJ Twins, the Sri Lankan musical duo, performing in the Maldives, and known for blending R&B, Hip Hop, and Sri Lankan rhythms, thereby creating a unique sound, have come out with a brand-new single ‘Me Mawathe.’
In fact, it’s a very special milestone for the twin brothers, Julian and Jason Prins, as ‘Me Mawathe’ is their first ever Sinhala song!
‘Me Mawathe’ showcases a fresh new sound, while staying true to the signature harmony and emotion that their fans love.
This heartfelt track captures the beauty of love, journey, and connection, brought to life through powerful vocals and captivating melodies.
It marks an exciting new chapter for the JJ Twins as they expand their musical journey and connect with audiences in a whole new way.
Their recent album, ‘CONCLUDED,’ explores themes of love, heartbreak, and healing, and include hits like ‘Can’t Get You Off My Mind’ and ‘You Left Me Here to Die’ which showcase their emotional intensity.
Readers could stay connected and follow JJ Twins on social media for exclusive updates, behind-the-scenes moments, and upcoming releases:
Instagram: http://instagram.com/jjtwinsofficial
TikTok: http://tiktok.com/@jjtwinsmusic
Facebook: http://facebook.com/jjtwinssingers
YouTube: http://youtube.com/jjtwins
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