- Time for urgent reform
- How free education changed everything
Education shapes Nations, and Sri Lanka learned this lesson well. In 1944, Dr. Cristopher William Wijekoon Kannangara made a bold decision that changed our country forever - he introduced free education for everyone, from primary school to university. As our first Education Minister, he believed that investing in people's minds would bring an everlasting value to the Nation.
His vision worked brilliantly. For nearly three decades, our economy grew steadily, with growth rates consistently above four per cent through the late 1990s and 2000s. This success came from having an educated workforce, something rare in South Asia at the time.
Let us be clear: those 76 years were not wasted. Today, you will find Sri Lankans in top universities, research centres, and major companies worldwide. Our literacy rate has reached an impressive 99%, and we have achieved excellent health outcomes with high life expectancy and low maternal mortality rates.
Here’s the problem: our education system, brilliant as it was, failed to connect strongly to economic development during the several decades that we implemented it. We created educated people, but not an economy that could fully harness their talents.
Struggling economy
The harsh truth is clear from the numbers. Our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita grew from just US $152 in 1960 to $ 3,828 by 2023, progress, but not nearly enough. Sri Lanka missed every major global wave of progress. We watched from the sidelines during the Industrial Revolution, the Technology Revolution, and the Information Technology boom that transformed other countries. Yes, we improved in agriculture parallel to the Green Revolution, our rice production jumped from 650 kg per ha in 1950 to 4,800 kg per ha in 2024, we treated farming as traditional village work instead of building a modern agricultural industry in the country which could compete globally.
Several factors held us back: we failed to recognise global opportunities early enough, political resistance prevented necessary economic reforms, and decades of internal violence, including the youth uprising in 1988-1989 and the devastating 30-year conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, drained our resources and diverted our focus from development.
There is a deeper cultural problem that we rarely discuss: our attitude toward business and wealth creation. Look at our traditional stories, novels, dramas, and films, the villain is almost always the shopkeeper or businessman who exploits the village. This negative portrayal of commerce has shaped generations to view economic success with suspicion rather than aspiration.
This pattern of arriving late to every opportunity has become our biggest weakness. While other countries study global trends and prepare their people for emerging industries, our education system remains stuck in the past. We are still teaching students to memorise facts for exams instead of developing the problem-solving skills that they will need in tomorrow's economy.
The global economic paradigm has shifted into a new dimension, particularly in the post-Covid-19 era. Countries now prioritise not only global economic integration but also strengthening their national economic resilience. The nations that survive and thrive are those capable of securing essential needs like food and energy while remaining competitive in high-tech industries.
As a middle-income nation, Sri Lanka must treat education as our ladder to success. Our current education system needs urgent upgrading, as it focuses on isolated exam results rather than connecting learning to real national development. Education should prepare our young people not just to pass tests, but to build a stronger economy, create a fairer society, preserve our culture, and develop the mental strength that our nation needs. The solution requires both money and smart planning. Sri Lanka currently spends only 1.5% of the GDP on education, well below the average for countries at our income level. But, simply throwing money at the problem will not work. We need to carefully decide where, how, and for what purpose that we invest every rupee.
The tuition culture: A system under siege
Sri Lankans hold an unwavering belief that education is the cornerstone of their children's future success. This deep-rooted conviction has driven families to pursue academic excellence at any cost, creating an intense societal hunger for educational advancement.
However, this noble aspiration has collided with harsh realities. Highly competitive national examinations and severely limited university places have created an artificial vacuum in the education system. With thousands of students competing for just a handful of university spots, desperate parents have turned to private tuition as their lifeline.
What began as supplementary after-school support has mushroomed into something far more sinister. Walk past any school in Sri Lanka at 2 p.m., and you will witness a troubling sight: thousands of children rushing not home to play or rest, but directly to their next classroom. Private tuition classes now dominate not only weekdays but also weekends and public holidays, particularly in major cities.
This shadow education system has evolved from helpful academic support into a massive parallel institution that threatens to undermine genuine learning. The very system designed to help students succeed may now be destroying the natural joy of discovery and critical thinking that true education should foster.
Here lies the heart of the problem: our obsession with high-stakes Examinations, the Grade Five Scholarship, and the General Certificate of Education (GCE) Ordinary Level, and Advanced Level (A/L) has transformed education from a thinking exercise into a mere memory contest. Desperate parents, watching their children struggle within an inflexible system, invest heavily in tuition classes that promise exam success but frequently deliver hollow educational experiences.
While meritocracy should be the cornerstone for navigating these competitive examinations, these pseudo-educational processes have fundamentally tarnished Dr. Kannangara's original educational vision and mission. The statistics are stark: in Kandy, for instance, only around 200 students gain admission to medical faculties under current circumstances, regardless of the thousands who compete. The majority of the stakeholders have failed to recognise the gravity of this A/L educational crisis, treating it as an acceptable norm rather than a systemic failure that demands urgent reform.
These mass tuition classes violate everything that we know about effective learning. For over 3,000 years, from ancient Egypt, Greece, India and China, educators have discovered the same truths: small class sizes work better, students need breaks to absorb information, and teachers can only be effective for limited hours each day. Yet, we are cramming hundreds of students into halls where a single teacher shouts through a microphone, calling it Sri Lanka’s secondary education, especially university entrance examinations.
Private tuition costs have reached unsustainable levels, creating severe financial strain for households across the country. Families now find themselves allocating more resources to supplementary education than to basic necessities, forcing difficult choices between educational investment and fundamental needs.
The consequences extend beyond financial hardship. A concerning pattern has emerged where virtually all Grade 13 students and the majority of Grade 12 students have abandoned regular school attendance altogether. These students now rely exclusively on private tuition centres, creating a parallel education system that threatens the integrity of formal schooling.
Despite widespread participation in private tuition programmes, academic outcomes remain disappointing. The 2024 GCE A/L results revealed that a certain percentage/number of candidates failed to achieve passing grades. Notably, these same students had been actively enrolled in tuition classes throughout their preparation period.
This data suggests the current tuition-dependent model may not be delivering the educational outcomes that justify its enormous cost and the abandonment of traditional classroom learning.
The real tragedy is not financial – it is what we are doing to our children's minds. Modern education research shows the best learning happens when students feel autonomous, competent, and connected to their teachers and peers. This is called intrinsic motivation - the natural curiosity that drives real understanding.
Instead, we are creating exam robots. Students memorise formulas without understanding concepts, cram facts without developing critical thinking, and stress about grades instead of falling in love with learning. Teachers become performers trying to entertain 100s of students rather than mentors who can identify each child's strengths and challenges.
The solution is not to ban tuition overnight. Regulate mass tuition centres, strengthen our schools so that parents do not feel forced to seek outside help, and most importantly, redesign our assessment system to reward thinking over memorisation. Only then can we rescue education from the tuition trap and give our children the learning that they truly deserve
Seven smart strategies to rebuild SL's economy
Leveraging strategic assets
Rather than pursuing direct competition with industrial giants, such as Japan's automotive dominance or South Korea's cosmetic empire, it must strategically position itself within existing global supply chains. The country's current success in manufacturing automotive airbag sensors exemplifies this approach, demonstrating how targeted specialisation can yield meaningful economic returns.
Ceylon Tea and Ceylon Cinnamon command premium prices in global markets, while the garment industry provides employment for 100s of 1,000s of citizens. The challenge lies in transitioning from these traditional sectors towards value-added products and innovations.
2. Strategic geographic positioning
Perhaps no asset remains as underutilised as Sri Lanka's strategic location along the ancient Silk Road maritime corridor. Each year, approximately 35,000 vessels traverse waters adjacent to the island, yet, the majority pass without engaging local services. Singapore and Dubai, United Arab Emirates transformed similar geographic advantages into extraordinary wealth by developing comprehensive maritime service ecosystems. With the anticipated construction of the Kra/Thai Channel within the next decade, which will create significant new shipping pathways, Sri Lanka must position itself as an indispensable maritime hub.
Ocean-based econ. Opportunities
Sri Lanka can establish itself as a regional leader in oceanography, developing cutting-edge marine research capabilities, sustainable fishing methodologies, and underwater resource exploration. Strategic partnerships between local universities and international research institutions would create employment opportunities for graduates while addressing global ocean challenges, positioning the Nation as a centre for marine science excellence.
4. Tourism: Beyond beaches and ancient sites
Tourism infrastructure represents a goldmine requiring strategic development rather than mere expansion. Sri Lanka possesses an enviable combination of pristine beaches, ancient temples, dramatic mountain landscapes, and over 2,500 years of documented history. From Sigiriya's ancient engineering achievements to Galle's colonial architectural heritage. Creating an integrated entertainment ecosystem will enable the industry to reach broader target demographics while maximising visitor engagement and spending.
5. Spiritual tourism and wellness economics
Sri Lanka's authentic Buddhist philosophical traditions offer precisely what increasingly stressed global populations seek. Based on the Buddhist philosophical traditions, we should create a novel platform to study and implement Buddhism. The country's meditation retreats, wellness tourism initiatives, and mindfulness programmes can attract visitors pursuing inner peace while generating employment across the hospitality, healthcare, and education sectors.
6. Educational alignment as econ. strategy
The foundation for implementing these strategies lies in educational system reform. Schools and universities must prepare students for maritime careers, tourism management, ocean sciences, and sustainable agriculture. When educational curricula align with identified economic opportunities, sustainable pathways are built upon existing strengths rather than pursuing unrealistic economic fantasies.
This comprehensive approach recognises that economic recovery requires strategic thinking rather than revolutionary change. Leveraging geographic advantages, building upon established brand strengths, and preparing human capital for identified opportunities for a sustainable economic foundation.
7. Econ. strategy
Three millennia of documented history provide a distinctive competitive advantage in the global sustainability economy. Ancient hydro-civilisation, exemplified by sophisticated unique cascade tank systems that harvest water without damming rivers, represents environmentally sustainable engineering that predates modern ecological consciousness by centuries. This ancestral hydraulic knowledge, when systematically documented and modernised through contemporary hydrological science, positions Sri Lanka as a potential global authority in sustainable water management, expertise increasingly valuable to water-stressed regions worldwide.
The traditional village-temple-tank-stupa nexus embodied an integrated model of spiritual well-being, environmental sustainability, and economic productivity that aligns precisely with contemporary development paradigms emphasising community resilience and ecosystem-based adaptation. By strategically leveraging this civilisational heritage through knowledge documentation, heritage-based educational tourism, dedicated research institutions, and policy frameworks that incorporate traditional ecological wisdom, Sri Lanka can transform its cultural assets into economic opportunities. Rather than pursuing generic modernisation models, the philosophical and practical foundations of unique hydro-civilisation, can create a development pathway that honours historical achievement while addressing 21st Century challenges in climate adaptation, sustainable agriculture, and water resource management.
Educational trajectory
Sri Lanka finds itself at a defining moment in its educational trajectory. A stark choice: persist with an antiquated system that fails to prepare graduates for contemporary challenges, or embrace transformative educational reform that honours Dr. Kannangara's foundational vision while addressing 21st Century imperatives.
The path forward demands comprehensive and immediate State-level intervention. A robust national education policy that cultivates three fundamental human capacities: skilled hands, compassionate hearts, and sharp minds. This holistic approach aims to propel the economy toward achieving a GDP per capita of $ 4,000 to $ 12,000 within the next decade. This national education framework must align with seven strategic pillars designed to rebuild Sri Lanka's economic foundation.
The educational foundation that Dr. Kannangara established has served the country admirably for decades. Today, it falls upon the current generation to build upon this legacy through reforms that transform Sri Lanka's educational system from an impediment to progress into a catalyst for sustainable development. The trajectory of our Nation's future hinges on the educational choices made today.
Yakupitiya is a Senior Lecturer in the Horizon Campus’ Education Faculty. Dr. Patabendige is a Senior Lecturer in the Sri Jayewardenepura University's Technology Faculty's Science for Technology Department. Dr. Jayasundera is an Associate Professor in the US’ Missouri Valley College’ School of Science and Agriculture. Dr. Sirimuthu is following a postgraduate degree in education at the Sheffield Hallam University, England
--------------
The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of this publication