The media serves as society’s watchdog, amplifying the voices of those often unheard. We each possess our own unique voice, and the media provides a platform for us to express ourselves. School children, who represent one of the most marginalized groups in the nation, face silent struggles. Yet, they lack the means to articulate their pain.
On Tuesday, the National Teachers’ Power (NTP) initiated a two-day island-wide sick leave campaign, urging the government to address the salary disparities among school principals and teachers. The NTP wants the President and the Education Minister to take swift action and resolve the wage discrepancies before June 21st.
Covid-19 wrought havoc on the education of schoolchildren for over two years. Children of the affluent class continued their studies with access to resources. The less privileged languished at home. They lacked both smart devices and internet connectivity. Throughout this period, the concerns of adults overshadowed the plight of these impoverished students, who were left with scant opportunities for learning.
In Sri Lanka, there exist two distinct groups of schoolchildren: those enrolled in private and international schools, and those attending state schools. It is disheartening to observe that despite professed sympathy for the plight of the less fortunate, there is a tendency to prioritize the needs of affluent students over their impoverished peers. Trade union actions by teachers and non-academic staff rarely disrupt the education of children attending private institutions and universities. Instead, it is the students of state schools and universities who bear the brunt of these strikes and protests. This phenomenon only serves to worsen the educational divide between the privileged and the marginalized.
The strikes do not keep the teachers from conducting private tuition. They maintain their practice without hindrance, perpetuating the educational advantage of wealthy students over their less privileged peers. Unfortunately, many poor parents cling to the hope that these trade unionists will champion their children’s cause. It is easier to expect wings from turtles.
The children of many of these educators and non-academic staff benefit from private education, funded by the taxes paid by parents of innocent, impoverished students in state schools and universities. This state of injustice remains unchallenged.
A recent survey by the Education Ministry brings not-so-welcome tidings. Ninety percent of Grade Three students struggle to identify digits and letters, lacking fundamental literacy and numeracy skills. This educational deficit is a direct consequence of the disruptions caused by Covid-19. The Ministry assessed the listening, speaking, reading, writing, and mathematical abilities of 10,000 Grade Three students nationwide. This result is alarming. Only 34 percent demonstrated basic literacy skills, while a mere seven percent displayed rudimentary mathematical proficiency.
The underprivileged schoolchildren rely on the country’s state education system. The teachers and non-academic staff heed the directives of trade union leaders who lack any personal investment in state schools or universities. These leaders, in fact, are often businesspeople who receive compensation from the government. It has become apparent that these purported trade union leaders are leading the innocent poor schoolchildren of Sri Lanka to ruin, perhaps to advance the agenda of a particular minor political party. Regrettably, the teachers prioritize these leaders over the welfare of the children.
Why do the parents of these innocent, impoverished schoolchildren turn a blind eye to these so-called trade union leaders? Recent developments indicate that these leaders, whose own children receive private education, advocate for Sri Lankan state schoolchildren to conclude their education at the age of 25 and commence higher education (university) at 30. The irony is not lost that some of these leaders are unmarried or childless, thus lacking firsthand understanding of children’s hardships.
Similarly, university non-academic staff contribute to the delay in university admissions for schoolchildren, neglecting the needs of undergraduates while enjoying their full monthly salaries, allowances, and comforts funded by the tax contributions of these innocent, impoverished undergraduates and schoolchildren.
Why do those undergraduates, who usually make their voices heard loud and clear, remain eerily silent about the strikes orchestrated by non-academic staff that disrupt their invaluable lives? Every moment of a person’s existence holds immense significance, particularly when foreign graduates are poised to seize employment opportunities. Where are these self-proclaimed protestors now?
Enough is enough. The time has arrived for the innocent, impoverished parents of all schoolchildren and undergraduates to step forward and demand that school teachers and university non-academic staff cease prolonging the lives of their cherished children. In the past, it was university lecturers who indulged in similar tactics. Now, an ordinary Sri Lankan student completes school around the age of 19, only to endure further delays in university graduation, often reaching their mid-20s or later (with doctors graduating even later), while their affluent peers, who received private education, enter the workforce at around 20. These innocent, impoverished schoolchildren have committed no crime.
The blame lies squarely with the education sector’s myriad trade unions, with Lucifer seemingly at the helm.
