Suicide at teachers' college raises questions about teaching methods
A student who took her own life at Wayamba National College of Education has sparked student protests and prompted the Ministry of Education to launch an investigation. For Father Gamunu Dias, National Director of Catholic Education, no one can be indifferent. This should never happen again while young people and future teachers must be protected.
Colombo (AsiaNews) – Another case of suicide is shaking Sri Lanka’s education system after a second-year student took her own life on 23 May at the Wayamba National College of Education in Bingiriya.
The Ministry of Education launched an urgent investigation into the death of Sanjeewani Kumari, originally from Teldeniya in Kandy, while the college temporarily put on hold its activities until tomorrow.
Education Ministry officials visited student dormitories and spoke privately with some students who wanted to report something. Serious allegations against the institution have reportedly been made.
Fellow students say Sanjeewani was subjected to constant psychological harassment by a teacher, which they say may have driven her to take her own life.
Students staged a protest on the evening of 24 May, demanding justice and an impartial investigation into the events leading up to the young woman’s death.
Wayamba National College of Education is a teacher training establishment created in 2000.
Some students told AsiaNews that some students have thought about suicide in recent years, but have not carried out the act thanks to friends and some good teachers.
“We have heard and experienced various forms of very unpleasant influence, irregularities, and oppression without any justifiable reason,” said a former student.
Another student said that students have been pressured not to report such situations. “We cannot tell others. When the authorities found out about it, the lecturers wrote letters included in our personal files saying that our behaviour and conduct were not good. They also deducted marks from our exams. Such cruel treatment stopped students from taking action against anyone," he said.
Joseph Stalin, secretary general of the Ceylon Teachers Union (CTU), complained about poor monitoring by the authorities. "There are nearly 20 NCOEs[*] in the country, and many of them have serious administrative issues,” Stalin told AsiaNews.
Now students are demanding a change to the current schedule, which starts at 5:45 am with physical training and continues until 7 pm when dinner is served. The curricula should also serve as a training method for teachers.
“We cannot condone the suicide of a student preparing for teaching due to personal reasons or under the influence of someone. It is the responsibility of all of us to thoroughly investigate the real reason behind it,” said Father Gamunu Dias, National Director of Catholic Education, speaking to AsiaNews.
“It is the responsibility of the government to carefully consider every step necessary to protect our children and the teaching generation for the future so that such a thing does not happen again,” he added.
What is more, “If this suicide was due to someone's influence, steps should be taken to rectify the situation and punish the relevant people. It is also essential to enact laws in this country so that such unfortunate incidents do not happen again.”
Photo: Mojo News
[*] National College of Education.
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