No more political interference:

Grade One admissions to be streamlined

by Uditha Kumarasinghe

The Education Ministry will formulate a transparent methodology on Grade One admissions and parents need not go to the Ministry seeking help to admit their children to Grade One said Education Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam.

Grade One admissions have become one of the most pressing issues in the education sector. Almost 1,000 to 2,000 people go to the Education Ministry on public days to admit their children to Grade One, the Minister told the Sunday Observer yesterday. “I don’t think the admission of students to Grade One should be through politicians’ lists any more.

In future, the Ministry will formulate a methodology for this purpose. We will also rectify the errors in some circulars.”

According to the methodology in the university sector, it is important for students to know whether they have qualified to enter university or not based on the marks he obtained at the GCE Advanced Level examination. Nobody can interfere and change that process.

A transparent methodology will be formulated for Grade One admissions as well. We can’t make these changes overnight and it will take time to effect these changes, the Minister said. The Minister said that during the tenure of the former Government, there was political interference to admit children to Grade One.