Tertiary education based on specialised institutes must replace faltering university system in Sri Lanka

August 29, 2012, 6:51 pm, The Island 

In many countries – notably in the Soviet Union – specialised academic Institutes take on the task of training future specialists in key areas of learning. Suppose a school-leaver or a person with a first degree wishes to be a specialist physicist or obtain a diploma of specialization in this field. As things are in this country, he (or she) must enroll in one of the nondescript physics departments in our impoverished universities - which may, with justice, be described as mere teaching stations for undergraduates. The few competent physicists we have in this country are ‘loners’ in scattered places that serve as centres of undergraduate instruction. There is little professionalism in such places and it is a flight of extraordinary optimism to hope that such places will thrive as as centres of research and innovation. Suppose the scarce resources – human as well as the necessary peripherals – are concentrated in one place – a specialised institute – is it not clear that there will be a vast improvement in the quality of teaching and research in physics? Such institutes will offer courses for school-teachers, technicians and interested members of the public while taking over from the traditional universities the burden of instructing those reading for honours degrees in the subject. Research and teaching is best done when there is a critical mass of specialists working in an institute dedicated to the advancement of science. The low standard of research in our country is due to a ‘guru-sishya’ mentality in our places of learning.- the system where the is a ’know-all’ that passes his precious wisdom to his ‘disciples’. In scientific research, the young are often the great innovators and their teachers must stand aside when the need arises. This collegial spirit flourishes best when camaraderie is established between equals – a situation that is rarely seen in traditional places of learning but that which is vital for research in science. Hence the need for independent institutes of learning and research that foster this new spirit.

What has been said for the discipline of physics has a very general applicability. Thus Institutes foe Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Geology and the Earth Sciences, Mathematics etc can be established by combining resources and by affiliation with universities already established. The education of specialists – be they the elite or humdrum ordinary folk – will pass on to specialist Institutes dedicated to the single-minded advancement of teaching and research in a chosen field. The disciplines outside science – for example, history, languages and religious studies – can be ‘institutionalized’ along similar lines and a new sense of dedication instilled into the study of subjects widely regarded as staid and unglamorous. Suppose we succeed in this revolutionary approach to Tertiary Education – does it mean that existing universities will decline to the contemptible level of a post-secondary certification centres? They need not if the first-degree courses are revamped to be a powerful basis for launching into careers that are wide open to the persevering and the ambitious. The first degree must not be a specialization – thus ‘Arts’ students must follow a course in science while science students must learn some history and philosophy. Both groups must strengthen their grasp of English by taking special courses in this vital subject. If these innovations are adopted, the first degree can be a true preparation for challenging work in in Post-Graduate Institutes, Administrative Service, Teaching etc.

Let us conclude by speaking briefly about financial outlays – a very contentious issue among academics these days. The Institutes must seek funds from the philanthropic public, industry and from students with the capacity to pay for the instruction received. They must have the power to deal directly with sponsors and supporters of the work they are engaged in and to tailor their programmes to meet current demands in commerce and industry. This must surely be a welcome relief for those who are appalled to see universities being directed by trade-unions and ill-disciplined bands of students. The ethos of disinterested learning and service to humanity must be placed foremost in the work of the proposed Institutes. This means that scholars – not politicians - will the principal architects. The goodwill and dynamism of politicians must be co-opted to secure the ends that serve all.

R. Chandrasoma