Extraordinary school on verge of closing down ... 'rises from the ashes' inside a bus ... owing to efforts of creative development

Extraordinary school on verge of closing down ... 'rises from the ashes' inside a bus ... owing to efforts of creative development

Gurugoda Kanishta Vidyalaya in Horana Education Section was said to be at a risk of closing down sometime back and has by now turned into a rural school which has won acclaim because of a strategy of a creative principal. 

The said school which brought memories of the fictitious story of 'Hari puduma iskole' was once again brought to life when it was on the verge of closing down with the absence of buildings with the

support of a discarded bus where classes were held. At the time when Mr. Ajith Premakumara assumed his first appointment as principal in the year 2010 there was no child who had entered grade one in Guruoda Kanishta Vidyalaya.

This is how he developed the school. "When I came to school, there were only about 9 teachers and 51 children. There was not even one child for year 1. Facilities were far and few in between ... the buildings were erected with poles connected to them ... there were not even proper classrooms for the children. What I did first of all was renovate the buildings and give a new leash of hope for children and teachers. I have read that there are classes in railway compartments in other countries". 

He spoke about the way in which the 'classroom inside the bus' commenced. What came to the mind of Principal Mr. Ajith Premakumara was that it would be possible to utilise a bus out of use for conducting classes in school. He then took steps to contact Transport Minister Kumara Welgama and take a bus which was out of use left standing at Horana depot. 

"We changed the bus which was brought like that to suit our requirements and made it a classroom. We used the bus to teach Buddhism and the Tamil Language. The children came to this classroom  with a great liking. An announcement was pasted on the glass of the bus that it was stopped next to universities, educational academies, Law College, technical colleges and advanced educational institutes. It was also mentioned there that this bus would be in motion from birth till victory is secured in life. Actually because of that bus classroom this school was able to get much support from people. As a result we managed to get further building facilities. 

At present over 250 students have their education at Gurugoda Kanishta Vidyalaya equipped with modern buildings. About 38 children are studying in year one alone. Other than the bus classroom, this school has drawn more attention compared to other schools in the zone also because of creative aspects such as 'Rengum kamatha, Weda Benkuwa, Gurugoda rupavahiniya, oralosuwa, Sellam midula, Jathika urumaya' which Principal Ajith Premakumara introduced to this school.     

"A school is a centre of resources of learning. What I hoped was to create a learning source when a child would step out of the classroom," he added. "You can't get away by saying 'no -- can't. Our school possesses some facilities which are not available in the city. We have provided to children new and modern desks and chairs which are being introduced to primary classes in the country. Just as much as traditional classes the most modern type of classes too are available in our school". It is mentioned in records of this school that representatives of 114 schools in the island have made visits to have a look at Gurugoda Kanishta Vidyalaya already. 

Principal Mr. Ajith Premakumara who has dedicated himself for the development of Gurugoda Kanishta Vidyalaya for a period of close upon 8 years this way has obtained a transfer from this school and has got an appointment as a principal of another school. He has already taken steps to develop that school too. 

Information -- BBC Sinhala Service