Free education and private universities:

School Take Over Act helped poor children

W T A Leslie Fernando

Fostering English education by the present government should be appreciated. A knowledge of English is essential to master science and technology. Second part of this article was published on October 2

When Dr C W W Kannangara implemented the Free Education Scheme his next step was to take over all the assisted schools. But it was shelved when he lost the Matugama seat at the 1947 elections. It is said that when in 1952 Dr Kannangara was returned to Parliament as the Member for Agalawata he was not made Education Minister due to pressure form the Catholic Church.

At the 1960 July General Elections, the SLFP pledged that it would vest the assisted schools in the State.

Accordingly the Schools Take Over Act was passed in the Parliament with a majority of 60 members. Only the UNP and the Federal Party voted against it. Nevertheless, the Catholic Church was getting ready from 1956 to resist it. In 1959, at a meeting in Negombo Archbishop Thomas Cooray declared, “Our schools should not be touched. We would fight to the end even by shedding blood to protect them.”

At the Schools Take Over many Catholics on the instigation of the Church protested against it. Some Catholics even forcibly occupied schools and some schools in Catholic areas had to be closed.

However many Catholic teachers supported the Schools Take Over. As time went on many Catholic parents realized that education of their children would be adversely affected by the closure began to support the move. Gradually there developed a strong public opinion in favour of the Schools Take Over.

Special envoy

In this background Cardinal Graciano of India who came to Sri Lanka as a special envoy to study the issue advised the Catholic Church to give up the struggle and the Church retreated. In the process they managed to continue some elite schools like St Joseph’s and St Peter’s as non-fee-levying schools.

In the schools take over then Education Minister Badi-Uddin Mahmoud tactfully dealt with the situation without leaving room for any bloodshed. Although Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike was educated in St Bridget’ Convent, a leading Catholic school she never yielded to the pressure from the Church. She always spoke with pride on the schools take over until her death.

The schools take over was indeed a blessing to poor Catholic children as well. Before that a child of a poor carpenter or a fisherman could rarely enter the University from a prestigious Catholic school. Now higher education has reached the poorest of the poor Catholics.

This is evident from the Puttalam District that has the largest percentage of Catholics except for the Mannar District that has a very thin population. Every year many from the Puttalam District pass out as professionals.

Towards the end of January 1962, there was an attempted coup by high ranking officers in the military and the Police close to the Catholic Church. This coup has been interpreted as an attempt orchestrated by the Catholic circles because of the schools take over but was repulsed.

National language

In 1979, the J R Jayewardene Government began to give salaries and pensions to teachers and other benefits for non-fee-lavying schools. Yet the large sums are taken as donations on admission of children to these schools.

The Catholic Church is also setting up International Schools all over the country to cater to the rich. The Catholic Church once failed to sabotage free education but now it is overriding free education by various devices and fulfilling its aims and objectives.

There is a wrong belief that the Sinhala medium was began after 1956 when Sinhala was made the national language. However, Sinhala and Tamil were made the medium of instruction with the educational reforms of Dr C W W Kannangara in the 1940s.

Education was widened for the benefit of the poor by changing the medium of instruction to National languages. Earlier, only four percent of the population could benefit from higher education which was in English.

It is true that in the present set up favours the rich. The children of the rich could go abroad, enter foreign Universities and qualify in various fields and the poor students are handicapped. To solve this issue they could set up affiliated institutions to the existing Universities rather than opening up private Universities. There are NGO’s waiting for an opportunity to destabilize the society and culture in Sri Lanka. By opening up private Universities they would be provided with an ideal opportunity to enter the trade for the purpose.

Medium of instruction

It is also true that English is a sine-quo-non to gain modern knowledge. For this purpose without changing the medium intensive courses in English, they could be set-up in the Universities. We were the last batch to enter the Peradeniya University in the English medium and we entered in 1959. From 1960, students who entered the University were provided with intensive courses in English. They have excelled in every walk of life today even better than the English medium students.

The setting up of private Universities and the change of medium of instruction to English would benefit only the Catholic Church and the International schools that have their medium of instruction in English. It would enable the affluent classes from the elite to rival the poor students benefitted by free education. It would also negate all the progressive measures gained by the masses by free education and the schools take over. It would take back the country to the colonial regime.

Concluded

The writer is a former President of the Newman Society Alumni Association