Great Guru of 'English With a Smile'
A colossus in the sphere of education in Sri Lanka William Henry
Samaranayake created a great legacy through his contributions as an
English language educationist in Sri Lanka. Born in 1906 in Narammala,
November 22 of this year marks the 105th anniversary of this doyen
amongst English educators who began his career at the age of 18 in 1924,
entered the Teacher Training College in Gampaha and passed out in 1930
as a trained teacher carrying the prestigious Trained Teacher Bilingual
Certificate from the Department of Education.
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William Henry Samaranayake |
His illustrious career is synonymous with the school he served as
Principal, St. Bernadette's College Polgahawela. Having contributed much
to the school's development with a host of buildings and many other
facilities being done during his tenure as Principal, the school today
stands as a testimony to his passion to serve the future of Sri Lanka's
education.
Education system
Amongst the most significant contributions he has made to the sphere
of English education in Sri Lanka the most well known would be the
publications he made to further the English teaching methodology in
schools. 'English with a smile' and 'Practical English' are publications
which have been appreciated for generations and proved the test of time
in their value to the education system. The far thinking visionary
William Henry Samaranayake made his lasting impression upon successive
generations of Sri Lankan schoolchildren by bequeathing his wealth of
knowledge in English education methods through his books, which became
supplementary guides to many children across the island.
Many are the felicitating words of appreciation that have been made
by persons of note who openly recognized the service rendered by William
Henry Samaranayake particularly through his books that helped to further
the English education amongst schoolchildren from non English speaking
backgrounds.
Global village
In the W. H. Samaranayake Birth Centenary Commemoration volume former
Director of Education Attorney-at-Law Galhena Wijewardena states that
when he was sent to New Zealand in a yearlong training programme at a
higher institute for English education, he had the pleasure to see a
copy of Practical English amongst the numerous books used. Calling W. H.
Samaranayake his 'guru' in teaching the fundamentals of good English,
chairman of the Sri Lanka Legal Aid Commission Attorney-at-Law S. S.
Wijeratne states in the same publication mentioned afore - "Practical
English virtually set the tone of English education at the
Pre-University level.
Students from far and wide joined St. Bernadette's College to take a
sip of English education from late Samaranayake." Sri Lanka is now at a
crossroads where we are now competing with the world to claim our
rightful place in the context of the global village called the
globalization process. And the importance of English is now becoming
more significant than before, in this context the service rendered by
William Henry Samaranayake by imparting his knowledge by combining
theoretical knowledge with practical expertise of an educator has played
a great role developing Sri Lanka's education pathways.
- Dilshan Boange |
