Sri Lanka is proud of its solid position in the education sector. It was one of the best in the world, but clearly over the time our position has eroded. Government after governments ineffective plans targeting the education system and the peoples unwillingness to embrace technology clearly took its toll in our education sector during the China Wuhan Virus - COVID19 lockdown.

When the first local transmissions were detected in Sri Lanka, curfew was imposed. When they knew it was not working a total lock down was implemented because people pressured for it. This was disruptive for the whole country. Many businesses permanently shut their doors for the last time. Daily waged people were left without food. People died of stampedes where there the generous offered money. It was utter chaos through out the country while the professionals and privileged were trying out recipes and learning to cook.

It is not surprising that most children in Sri Lanka had little to no ability to remote learn during the lock down. While the government intervention meant utilities were provided uninterrupted even if people failed to settle their dues many children didn't have a computer or a tablet to continue learning. This is not limited to schools. In the case of government universities, a significant portion of students do not have access to a smart device or a computer to learn online, a news report revealed.

The worst affected would be Advaned Level students. Advanced Level is a very competitive examination filled with stress and worries. Passing the exam and achieving top island ranks open up higher education for students. In 2007 I was the 420th in the island in the mathematics stream which gave me the option to go to a university of choice to follow engineering. Those who couldn't afford technology would have to now compete with students who had the technology and finances to enable them learn and practice during the lock-down.

The sad thing is the previous UNP lead government under the patronage of the then PM Ranil Wickramasinghe, finance minister Ravi Karunanayake and the education minister Akila Viraj Karyawasam had plans to provide tablets for every AL student. But the Marxist JVP and the SLPP (the current government) opposed the movement citing various concerns. Not only that people also joined in the circus and halted the movement.

Politicizing education and stupidity of the general public and their reluctance to embrace technology has significantly comprised Sri Lankan education. While Sri Lankan students are still struggling to start their learning process my niece in Australia did remote learning through her iPad.

When will we learn? When will we change? A crippled nation cannot face a challenging future. We need leaders with a vision and a population that pushes those leaders to make progress.