Hon. Kathiravelu Shanmugam Kugathasan

¶ 01 Hon. Chairman, I present my views on the Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education Votes.

¶ 02 To improve education, we must reform curricula, pedagogy, and teacher recruitment. Our schools are largely teacher-centred. Western practice adopts student-centred approaches informed by Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences and Differentiated Learning, John Dewey’s Inquiry-Based Learning, and Vygotsky’s Collaborative Learning and Scaffolding. These engage students to explore, explain, elaborate, and evaluate. By adopting such methods, we can raise learning capacity, standards, and knowledge.

¶ 03 Students largely study only with the aim of university admission. Around 265,000 sit A/Ls annually; about 165,000 qualify for university, but only around 40,000 gain admission; 10,000 enter teacher colleges. Thus about 100,000 who fail and 115,000 who qualify but don’t gain admission are left without direction. The state and society must guide them. Many countries, including India, operate polytechnics with hundreds of three-year diploma programmes to provide employable skills. We should introduce similar programmes.

¶ 04 Our education is not aligned with the job market; graduates often lack qualifications, skills, and experience demanded by employers. Universities abroad offer thousands of job-oriented degree programmes—e.g., the University of Toronto. Our universities must similarly reshape programmes to improve employability, backed by a clear higher education reform strategy covering vocational training, research funding, and STEM initiatives, and resolving funding, staffing, and infrastructure gaps.

¶ 05 The 2025 Budget allocates Rs. 271 billion to Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education—Rs. 206 billion recurrent and Rs. 65 billion capital—an increase of Rs. 11 billion over last year. However, education’s share is 6.4% of the total budget; this should be raised to at least 10%. Teacher development gets Rs. 6.13 billion, up by Rs. 2.08 billion—commendable. Yet the allocation for primary school facilities drops from Rs. 302 million last year to Rs. 10 million—concerning.

¶ 06 Most universities, including in the North and East, suffer from poor infrastructure and limited research funding. As a developing economy, Sri Lanka needs modern facilities, research funds, and capable faculty. Prioritize allocations for infrastructure, research grants, and industry collaboration.

¶ 07 Teacher deployment is inequitable. Many teachers posted to disadvantaged areas obtain transfers back to their home districts soon after. To address this, select trainees for National Colleges of Education from within the relevant Divisional Secretariat areas and appoint them back to vacancies in those areas—similar to how the Public Administration Ministry appoints Grama Niladharis.

¶ 08 In Trincomalee District, teacher shortages are: 278 in primary, 991 in junior secondary, and 606 in senior secondary—total 1,875. Running schools under such shortages is a disservice to our future. Fill vacancies without delay. Additionally, 195 schools function without principals; 73 Education Administrative Service vacancies exist; 78 non-academic vacancies exist (including 73 watchmen). Schools without watchmen invite theft.

¶ 09 Sixteen school buildings are dilapidated and need Rs. 39 million for repairs. Twelve schools lack technology labs; 19 need classroom modernisation. Thirty-three schools are at flood risk; fifteen face elephant hazards. Allocate funds to protect schools from disasters. Addressing these will place education on a more effective path. I conclude.