A study carried out by the Education for Progress Foundation (E4P) has shown an acute shortage of teachers for science, mathematics and languages Enlglish and Sinhala.

This was revealed when E4P President A.H.G. Ameen addressed a seminar on education at the Hotel Sapphire recently. Mr. Ameen, a prominent lawyer, also said provincial schools suffered because of lack of funds and facilities and a discriminatory policy pursued by the authorities with national schools getting more funds and facilities.

E4P President A.H.G. Ameen addressing the seminar

He said the E4P survey had also shown that more girls than boys enter universities with an increasing number of girls showing greater interest in studies. He said this trend - a highly educated female population -- might give rise to social problems especially when it came to marriage. If this trend was to continue, finding educated men for educated women for marriage would be difficult and the imbalance in the family could contribute to an increased rate of divorce, he said.

Supreme Court Justice Saleem Marsoof as chief guest and Western Province Governor Alavi Moulana as guest of honour graced the seminar which also coincided with the E4P's annual general meeting.

Papers were presented on, Higher Education in Sri Lanka - Reforms Necessary, "Holistic Islamic Education for Muslim Schools" by M.H.M.Jiffry, Principal Zahira College Colombo; "Restructuring of Schools in Colombo for achieving results through the efficient use of resources" by A.B.M. Ashraff, Deputy Director, Ministry of Economic Affairs; and "Why male students lack interest for Higher Studies - Research Perspective" by Nizam Lanthra.

In the panel discussion, the former Additional Secretary to the Ministry of Religious & Cultural Affairs S.H.M. Jameel, the former Zahira College Colombo Principal Javid Yusuf, Retd High Court Judge U.L.A. Majeed and Muslim Educational Conference Secretary M.Y. Bawa, expressed their views on the papers presented.

Former Muslim Ladies' College Principals Jezima Ismail and S.B. Jurangpathy and Puttalam High Court Judge Arfa Thassim and several Principals and Teachers took part in the discussion. Mr. Jiffry in his paper said, Holistic education is a philosophy of education based on the premise that each person finds identity, meaning and purpose in life through connections in the community to the natural world and to humanitarian values such as compassion and peace.

He further said dedicated teachers and counsellors are important but "we lack resourceful teachers. It is important to find teachers who inspire students and encourage them to reach their best." Mr. Ashraff in his paper said there are 20 Muslim schools in Colombo, of which 18 are in the Colombo Municipality area, and most of these schools suffer from lack of space for new buildings and shortage of teachers.

Mr. Lanthra in his paper on "Why male students lack interest for Higher Studies - Research Perspective" said research showed most parents in Colombo's poverty-stricken area have a negative attitude towards education. Only 16% of the parents are showing interest in their children's education. "To overcome this problem there must be awareness programmes for parents and create opportunities for parents to visit schools."