Schools to be upgraded

Dharma SRI ABEYRATNE

Schools under the 1,000 school development programme will be provided with facilities to teach and improve the learning process, Education Minister Bandula Gunawardena said.

Minister Bandula Gunawardena

The programme to develop 1,000 selected secondary schools will commence this year with the objective of solving educational problems and shortcomings in disadvantaged rural schools.

"At least one school will be developed under the 1,000 secondary schools development programme covering all divisional secretariat divisions. Equal opportunities will be provided to every child in the country under this programme. The ultimate aim is to produce professionals with required knowledge and special skills to develop the country," the minister said.

He said this will entail incorporating global education perspectives into the education system in line with growing global demands. Information Technology, science, mathematics, English, aesthetic studies and sports will form an integral part of the new educational vision, the minister said

"Schools with the best learning environment will provide students with better education. Aiming to reach this target, a language lab, a mathematics lab, an Information Technology lab and a science lab will be established in every school under the 1,000 school development programme," he said.

"Although we have admitted large numbers of children into the formal school system, only a handful of university educated graduates emerge from the system. An education that will ensure the future well-being of the mass of the school population left out of the university system, will be provided under the new scheme," Gunawardena said.