- Prof. S.T. Hettige on the Covid-19-induced educational crisis
For all its own flaws and inconveniences, the ongoing pandemic has been successful in bringing many inconsistencies and flaws in many systems to light. Discussions are being held on reforming the social system and the educational system, and it has changed the ways businesses approach their work. So despite all the hardships we are forced to go through during these difficult times, there may be hope yet for humankind.
Speaking to University of Colombo Emeritus of Sociology Prof. S.T. Hettige, he revealed several issues in our educational system that have turned up after the pandemic hit.
“Many problems in our country currently, are largely due to the lack of public awareness. There is a connection between education and democracy that most don’t see,” he stated, adding that the education system can only work if the people in charge are aware of what they are supposed to do.
Highlighting the importance of working through a problem, Prof. Hettige explained that the Government should not just act on the word of one person, rather look into the issue themself and work on the best responsive action to eradicate the problem. This means of understanding is not something that comes naturally but over years of learning and participating in a school environment, which, as he pointed out, is not available to the children that are currently studying as they cannot physically go to school or university.
“The generally positive impression that many people have regarding the country’s achievements in the education sector and the many deep-seated issues have persisted for long,” he commented, observing that some of the changes that have taken place in recent decades have not necessarily been for the better. In this regard, the widening gap between the ideals and the most cherished objectives of education on the one hand and the actual state of affairs in education on the other is the most important.
The changes in the system
Sri Lanka’s modern education system has evolved over many decades, even going back to colonial times. Prof. Hettige explained that the well-known Kannangara education reforms of 1945 led to the revamping of the then education system, making it more streamlined, democratic, and equitable. But, over the last 70 years, it has gone through many changes, depending on economic, social, and cultural policies adopted by successive governments. After 70 years of free education, Sri Lanka has accomplished the Kannangara agenda, which achieved high performance in the socio-economic indicators. “Now the time has come for Sri Lanka to go beyond the Kannangara agenda to ensure the Sri Lankan children and youth are offered 21st Century skills-based education,” he stated, explaining that although Sri Lanka records high performance in internal efficiency of the education system, the external efficiency is low due to heavy academic and examination-oriented education and negligence of developing skills.
“The 21st Century learning framework demands generic skills as a learning outcome. Educational reforms need to address the issue of developing an innovative curriculum and authenticated learning and assessment systems to ensure the 21st Century children of
Sri Lanka to acquire generic skills and to be able to do things than simply have the knowledge of things with no skills to perform.”
As is widely discussed today, school education is narrowly conceived and is largely confined to knowledge acquisition, often knowledge of an instrumental nature, through school instruction. This is accompanied by participation in memory testing examinations. All these results in the neglect of the broader and deeper purpose of education to produce a well-rounded person who has multiple competencies and attributes.
Sri Lanka does not promote independent learning
Independent learning is important because it develops creativity and intellectual curiosity. Independent learning is about pupils being active rather than passive. It is about them working out the answers rather than being told them. As observed before, our country seems to take the side of caution, and would rather prefer to have the answers handed out rather than use a creative thinking process to come up with a procedure that would benefit all.
Unfortunately, because independent learning has never been part of our education system, as Prof. Hettige stated, children today are finding it very hard to learn online.
“If you go to school, or even university, you will see the students vigorously taking down the notes that the lecturer writes on the board. Instead of listening and understanding, they chose to memorise, which in the long run does not benefit anyone,” he commented. He explained that had we created the space for independent learning, then today, we would not see a decrease in how much students can grasp when their classes are being held online.
The best society is one with well-educated citizens. Prof. Hettige stated that this has limits: “A well-functioning society would not be entirely made up of scholars or academics; those who govern society need not remain in formal education until midlife.” Life experience, however, takes many forms; and it is possible to be overeducated. “But we should strive to educate as many of our citizens as well as possible until at least their early adulthood, in school and then through whichever form of higher education they might choose to pursue thereafter,” he continued. He also observed that modern society cannot make rational choices, so it is up to the Government currently to do so, but in the future, children should go through the process of independent learning in order to harness this skill and look forward to a better future.
Prof. Hettige believes that beyond the education we receive before and in the early stages of adulthood, while people can and should enroll in continuing education courses, they should, more importantly, continue to educate themselves. That requires independent learning skills and draws attention to perhaps the most obvious reason independent learning skills are important: if one continues learning throughout one’s life, one needs to be able to do so without relying on a teacher.
Reforming educational plans
On the one hand, the pandemic disrupted the school system and the universities, though steps have been taken to conduct classes and other activities online despite serious challenges that many students face to secure access to such programmes. On the other hand, some persisting problems within the education system have given rise to public agitations by teachers’ trade unions and others. “Though these issues need to be sorted out rapidly in order to create minimum conditions necessary for educational institutions to function, there are also long standing issues that need to be addressed through education policy reforms and other interventions,” stated Prof. Hettige.
Students are falling behind in online school. Where’s the Covid-19 ‘disaster plan’ to catch them up? Virtual learning might be keeping children and their families safer during a public health crisis. But it has made it exponentially harder for them to stay motivated and learn. Online classes are lecture-heavy, repetitive and devoid of student conversation. For months, experts hoped a return to classrooms would allow teachers to address the lapses in children's academic and social needs. For many students, that hasn’t happened.
“If a child had started primary school at the beginning of 2020, they would be moving to third grade soon, and let’s say, for instance, the pandemic continues for another year; then out of five years before the main exam, four years would be gone,” Professor Hettige pointed out. These children will not have learned the basics of life during the most important and impactful periods of their life. “Going to school means learning to learn; children learn to become more and more independent in terms of learning. When devoid of human contact, and the emotional support children receive in school, both from teachers and socialising with peers, their motivation to learn decreases significantly.” Minus that, parents have reported their school-age children are experiencing increased moodiness, and difficulties regulating behaviour and their attention.
A child who spends a major part of their young age in a well-organised educational institution is more than likely to develop as a versatile person with multiple competencies, diverse interests, a broad worldview, and widely valued human qualities. On the other hand, Prof.Hettige noted that no person should leave school without acquiring at least some of the above attributes that make the person fit to function in a modern democratic society, leading a productive and contented life, while contributing to the wellbeing of fellow citizens in whatever way they can.