The Minister of Education Dinesh Gunawardana said that the subject area of the courses will be prepared in a way that each student entering the university can learn Information Technology. Expanding this situation up to the schools is a function accepted by everybody, the minister said.
This was mentioned by the Leader of the House of Parliament and The Minister of Education Dinesh Gunawardana while participating in the occasion of inaugurating the construction of the technology faculty building of Malabe Boys’ School on 05th of January 2022.
The ministry of education has already started several special programs under the directions of HE the President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa for the creation of a system of education capable of winning the future. As one of its steps the foundation stone was laid for the construction of the technology faculty building of Malabe Rahula Boys’ School under the technology education development program of the ministry of education. Fifty three million rupees have been allocated for the construction of this building and thirty five million rupees for the equipment. The Minister of Education Dinesh Gunawardana, The Minister of Industries Wimal Weerawansa, Member of Parliament Major Pradeep Undugoda, MP Jagath Kumara, public officers, the principal of the school and the students attended in this occasion.
At this occasion The Minister of Education Dinesh Gunawardana expressed his ideas like this.
Today we start an educational opportunity for opening another strong door to enter this new field together with a large amount of expenditure. We were able to go for a methodical development through challenges. Hon. Minister Wimal Weerawansa as the Member of Parliament of the area and the chairperson of the development committee provided the necessary support and strength. Through that, the Malabe Boys’ School has become today a center of providing knowledge with more than three thousand student population. Today just like this school, Malabe Girls’ School also has achieved a great development. The development of Colombo city within the last thirty forty years has reached the Kaduwela area also.
The subject of Technology is very special. The foundation of the development of technology of a country is the steel industry. The iron ore in the ground of our country was able to take forward gradually the steel industry with the support of the Soviet Union. As mentioned in the cabinet papers submitted by our minister, the iron ore deposits are available in various regions of our country. If our steel corporation marched forward with the collaboration of universities according to a plan, it would not need for us to import high cost steel projects from other countries today. We have gone backward unable to develop this industry properly. I say emphatically that the countries based on steel industry have won the industrial revolution. Today it has been surpassed and new technology revolution has emerged. It is a remarkable victory entering the Malabe college also into this plan of taking the schools in the country towards this technology revolution.
The plan of the ministry of education has included all the areas that we can contribute to all fields for opening the doors of technology for our children. Specially for the children who study the information technology can enter a great knowledge domain which is not provided in the classroom as soon as the country is opened to the digitalization. Through the provisions of that it will be possible to convert the country into the development and improvement for the new generation waiting for the fulfillment of that hope. Kings Mayadunna and Rajasingha won the battles against Portuguese using the indigenous technology and also in the history it is mentioned that the weapons made in the country and used in those days were unique in the world. Damascus sward is considered as the best sward made in the world. But the history says that our soldiers used the swards better than Damascus sward. When we hear the story of Balangoda man we have utilized the wind for producing the wind power. When the world is going through many great revolutions with technical achievements, we have faced with the challenge of achieving success along with the reality prevailing on the earth.
We have to overcome the challenges of converting sun light and wind power onto usable energy under the Hon. President’s ‘vision for prosperity’ development program. On the success of this we would be able to open the technological fields for generating various employment opportunities and enormous wealth for the future of our children and the country also. Therefore, these children have come to an important occasion in which this school has received a massive investment. This is a special occasion received by the fields of science, mathematics and also the engineering.
For the students entering the universities for information technology, although they take or do not take the subject of information technology, the courses will be opened within the fields of university subjects that all students can go compulsorily through the information technology. Through this arrangement, though the students enter to any subject field, they pass out of it with the competency of essential subject of information technology. You and we all accept the necessity of bringing this subject to the schools. The request made for the playground and the equipment for this school has also submitted to the cabinet for approval and I say that happiness also will be able to enjoy very soon.”
