සිංහල වර්ණමාලාව

Education System In Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka maintains some of the highest literacy rates in South Asia. Despite the civil war which lasted for three decades the country performs well on educational indicators, such as elementary school enrollment, mean years of schooling and free education in public secondary and higher education. Sri Lanka has highest reported literacy rate in South Asia. Sri Lanka has obtained support from international aid organizations to improve its education system.

Practical problems in Sri Lankan education system
Although Sri Lanka report high literacy rates, there are practical problems which affect it’s education system. Uneven distribution of educational resources, language policies and lack of teachers in rural schools are some of the problems.

Levels of education in Sri Lanka
The elementary education system starts with grade one and ends with grade five. Entrance to elementary schools is based mainly on students’ place of residence. In grade five students have the option of sitting for the scholarship examination to gain entrance to a prestigious national school. 
The secondary school level is from grades six to eleven. In grade eleven students have to sit for the G.C.E.(Ordinary Level ) examination offering six compulsory subjects and three basket subjects. Courses for G.C.E.(Advance Level) examination are selected based on ordinary level results.  G.C.E.(Advance Level) course last for two years and students can study in science, commerce arts or technology streams. University admission is based on this G.C.E.(Advance Level) examination which is highly competitive.
The state universities in Sri Lanka admit only about twenty five thousand students for higher education out of about two hundred and twenty thousand students who sit for the advance level examination each year. Due to insufficient higher education facilities in Sri Lanka students sought university education abroad or in private universities. Sri Lankan government supports this interest by giving opportunities for students to obtain scholarships at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Australia is the leading destination for outbound tertiary level studies while United States, United Kingdom, India and Malaysia are other popular destinations. 
Although Sri Lanka has high literacy rates in South Asia the number of inbound students to Sri Lanka are small, highest number of students being from Myanmar and Bhutan. Sri Lankan government plans to offer scholarship opportunities to incoming international students.
Teacher training and qualifications
Teachers in Sri Lanka are trained in Teacher training colleges or in Bachelor of Education programs at public universities. Elementary and lower secondary school teachers must hold a Teacher trained certificate and upper secondary school teachers require Bachelor of Education degree or a Postgraduate diploma in Education