On Thursday, 19th February 2009 at 10.00 a.m., the Council for Business with Britain (CBB) English Teacher Training Programme Awards Ceremony will be held at the Ministry of Education Auditorium. This event is part of the CBB's English Teacher Training Programme carried out in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and managed by British Council with HSBC as the Principal Funder.

The awards ceremony will be graced by representatives of all the institutions involved in the CBB English Teacher Training Programme, with awards being given out by the Minister of Education, Hon. Susil Premajayantha MP, Mark Gooding, Deputy High Commissioner, British High Commission, Anil Wijesinghe, Chairman, Council for Business with Britain, Gill Westaway, Country Director, British Council Sri Lanka, and Nick Nicolaou, Chief Executive Officer, HSBC Sri Lanka and Maldives.

This event celebrates 150 teachers attached to 25 Regional English Support Centres (RESC) across the island receiving their University of Cambridge Teaching Knowledge Test (TKT) certificates. Leading to the exam, the teachers follow a TKT distance learning course, which helps them to understand different methodologies for teaching, the "language of teaching", ways in which resources can be used, key aspects of lesson planning and classroom management methods for different needs. Study sessions are facilitated by two mentors attached to the RESCs from where the teachers are from.

The CBB English Teacher Training Programme aims to improve teaching at a practical level as in turn it is expected to have an impact on the children who they teach by encouraging more participation and discussions in English in the classroom. Over the last 3 years, the CBB English Teacher Training Programme has trained 51 mentors who in turn have to mentor 6 teachers in three batches from their respective areas. Thus far, 162 teachers have been trained and with the current 150 teachers, receiving their certificates there will be 312 teachers who have been trained under the CBB English Teacher Training Programme.

The CBB English Teacher Training Programme trains teachers from mainly rural areas. It is a programme with geographical diversity, training teachers attached to 26 RESCs across Sri Lanka. These RESCs are based in Anuradhapura, Hanwella, Hatton, Balapitiya, Matale, Eheliyagoda, Hanguranketha, Kurunegala, Kalutara, Chilaw, Bolawalana, Kegalle, Nuwara Eliya, Kahawatta, Galle, Ampara, Badulla, Mahiyangana, Matara, Kandy, Batticaloa, Moneragala, Polonnaruwa, Gampaha, Trincomalee and Jaffna.

To sustain and continue the programme, the CBB have launched an innovative 'Sponsor a Teacher' initiative: CBB members are asked to sponsor individual teachers who are participating in the programme and will receive regular reports on their progress. Members can sponsor as many teachers as they wish and may decide to select teachers who work in parts of the country with which their company has a particular link.