Internationalisation of School Education - part 3

Continued from August 31

Dr. Siri GAMAGE

RECOGNISING the crisis in public education, the Government proposed significant reforms in the public education system and started to implement the reforms with the moral and funding support from international agencies such as the World Bank.

Aware of the sensitivities, surrounding free and universal education, the government tacitly facilitated the growth of international schools and other higher education institutions with international links. Very little public opposition was visible for such expansion making the task of the government even easier.

This time around those who have benefited from the economic policies of the post-77 governments, and at the same time disillusioned about the prospects of public education were in fact appreciative of the expanding internationalization and the open access available for international education.

Even these parents who decided to send their children to international schools and/or for higher education courses abroad with some financial difficulties were appreciative of these new opportunities.

University academics that rely on the public education for their sustenance also started to send their children to international schools, and later to follow university courses abroad with the increasing availability of such services in a variety of forms.

However, those who have completely missed out the opportunities provided by international education and have to rely on the public education alone (coupled with services from private tuition classes) have become ardent critiques of internationalization.

Yet, the expansion of international privatized education side by side with the national public education system with their characteristic differences and public perceptions deeply rooted in the historical context-colonial and post-independent- poses some fundamental questions.

These are evident in the social, political and educational discourses existing in Sri Lanka. The discourse is led by academics, journalists, policy makers and politicians as well as the NGOs, and international donor agencies who are involved in the education sector one way or another.

Meanwhile parents and children also face challenges whatever the path they choose to follow in terms of securing an education suitable for the current context.

In this paper I examine these questions based on the critical discourses prevailing in Sri Lanka. It summarizes essential aspects of the discourses, and critically comments on these.

The paper contributes to a critical understanding of the internationalization of education in comparison to the needs and wishes of the local population for a fair and equitable access and distribution of teaching and learning opportunities and resources.

Internationalisation of Education: Different Forms In Sri Lanka, the internationalization of education occurs in several ways. They are: 1. International schools preparing local students for the advance level examinations in the UK, and other Western countries eg. Cambridge Senior, London Matriculation examinations. Fees are charged.

2. Sri Lankan students going to other countries to follow secondary education eg. Either with parents who are emigrating or as fee paying students.

3. Sri Lankan students who are unable to get entry to local universities proceeding to other countries to follow tertiary education courses. Eg. UK, USA, Australia, Russia, India, Malaysia, Thailand.

Agents of overseas institutions assist these students, as are friends and family members who live in these countries and/or who have some knowledge about the countries and their education institutions.

4. Foreign universities offering their degree and diploma courses to fee-paying students in Sri Lanka. Several foreign universities have established their presence through partnerships with local private agencies for this purpose, in some cases establishing their own campuses eg. American university, Monash University College.

5. Academic and administrative staff of the publicly funded tertiary institutions, and staff of the education ministry etc, either obtaining their qualifications from foreign universities and/or making short term professional visits to foreign education institutions usually with funds provided by international bodies. Eg. Commonwealth, World Bank. Countries include UK, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India, and Pakistan.

6. Educational experts from other countries who are engaged by donor agencies through the ministry of education actively advising the Sri Lankan government, and also being active in formulating education policies and programs and special projects for reform and development eg. The World Bank Report (1996).

7. Teaching materials such as textbooks, journals published in mostly western countries in the English speaking world being available in the libraries at educational institutions, and in many situations being recommended for various courses.

8. Foreign researchers exclusively or in collaboration with local academics conducting research on Sri Lanka’s educational issues, publicizing their results. Through this process introducing various conceptual and methodological approaches from outside that are then picked up by local researchers.

International Schools and Public Schools: whom are they catering to and why? Role and impact of international schools and associated discourses have to be examined in comparison to the role and status of and the associated discourses relating to the public schools. This is because the two are inextricably linked in various ways.

The World Bank Report stated that in Sri Lanka ‘Most education is provided by the state sector (some administered nationally in a few prestigious schools, but the majority at a provincial level); the few licensed private sector schools are still officially not permitted to expand nor are new private schools accepted’.

It further stated that several ‘international schools’ are tolerated operating under the Companies Act without clearance from the education authorities, mostly teaching in English, and there are many crammers supplementing teaching to help pass examinations’.

Regarding private sector higher education it said, ‘private sector higher education is permitted but is almost non-existent, the least private sector activity in Asia’ (The World Bank Report 1996: 1-2).

Hettige provides a somewhat different account particularly in the case of private higher education with international collaboration: It is important to note the rapid expansion of private education in Sri Lanka after 1977. The number of private schools increased from 37 in 1983 to 63 in 1992(Central Bank, 1992:95).

Most of these were so-called international schools offering primary and secondary level instruction in the English medium to children from well-to-do urban families, in particular those belonging to the NUMC (New Urban Middle Class).

While most expatriate families living in Colombo also send their children to these schools, their main attraction to local parents is the medium of instruction.

The period after 1977 also witnessed the establishment of several private colleges in and around Colombo preparing secondary and post-secondary school children for examinations conducted by overseas agencies and universities.

The writer is Senior Lecturer, Contextual Studies & Education School of Education, Faculty of Education, Health and Professional Studies University of New England, Armidale, Australia.

-Asian Tribune

To be continued