Thaksalawa

Introduction

Though Sri Lanka has recorded a high literacy rate (92%) and a primary enrolment rate (97%), according to UNICEF, 18 percent of students drop out of formal education before completing the ordinary level examination (GCE O level). Dropouts are more than 50 percent in some disadvantaged areas, including estates, rural areas, and urban slums. As there are no adequate opportunities for these children to enter into other forms of education, such as vocational training, they either follow their parents to work in farms or become unemployed and sometimes become victims of crime groups. High dropout rates in some areas and some communities are due to the demand side (e.g., poverty, lack of contusive environment at home and in the village) and supply side (e.g., shortage of teachers, school facilities, etc.

These children are deprived of enormous opportunities available locally and in the world, in particular, due to the lack of access to the gateway to such opportunities: education facilities in English and IT. While students of well-facilitated schools in major cities are equipped with these skills when they pass out from their schools and enjoy emerging carrier opportunities, those in rural and some urban areas are denied higher education and job opportunities.

BGF collaborates with Kanrich to fill this knowledge gap between rural and city students by organizing English and IT classes at disadvantaged schools in collaboration with schools/temples/churches in selected areas. The program was implemented by Kanrich for several years providing training to more than 500 students. Kanrich received the Asia Responsible Entrepreneurship Award in 2017 for outstanding results of the Thaksalawa project. The program intends to train at least another 500 students within the next 2 years.

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Overall objective

To improve students' knowledge of disadvantaged schools, particularly in English and IT, by enabling them to capture emerging global opportunities.

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Implementation strategy

• • BGF and Kanrich jointly select help-deserving schools where Kanrich branches located
• • BGF/Kanrich staff hold consultations with school principals or heads of temples/churches as appropriate on the program, including venues for classes and who participates in such classes
• • The program is offered to students starting from Grade 6
• • Usually, 2-hour classes are held per week
• • BGF/Kanrich hires qualified English and IT teachers on a voluntary or fee-based
• • Kanrich provides desktop computers for IT units established at those selected schools
• • BGF/Kanrich staff, together with schools, monitors the performance of students and reports to sponsors

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How sponsors of the program contribute

• • Provision of donations through BGF (account details are given below)
• • Volunteering to be teachers in English and IT (will be extended to Maths and accounting)

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We accept donations in the form of wire transfers and deposits at the following accounts: