Role of schools in the economy

by Rohantha Athukorala

In the recent past we have been exposed to allegations and counter allegations about a Rector of a leading private school which was unfortunate, given that this particular school, has produced some of the most outstanding citizens for Sri Lanka.

The overall atmosphere created is a loss for Sri Lanka given that the level of unemployment in the country is below five percent and we know that there is a culture fit issue regarding graduates who come out of the traditional university system fitting into the private sector which takes us to the role of the school in developing talent for tomorrow.

Challenges

With the booming tourism industry launching almost 3,000 hotel rooms this year, the IT/BPO industry wanting to be a $ 1 billion industry from the current $0.6 billion, the tea industry driving to be a value added product which can be a $2 billion business for Sri Lanka not forgetting the Ceylon Cinnamon thrust to be another $1 billion industry. The million- dollar question is where do we source the hands and feet to achieve these objectives of the private sector.

We need quality people and the task is in the hands of the school administrators. Attitude formation and basic skill development takes place more at primary education level and less at the graduate level.

Skills and attitude

Basic skills is the ability to get on with people and work as a team, sharing of an idea using words and pictures (basic communication skills), respecting authority but also having the skill to challenge an idea for effectiveness, being time conscious, financially responsible for 'association' money, clean in the way you dress, learning how to take defeat and disappointment and fight back to win.

These are some of the most important attributes to look for, when hiring a youngster as a management trainee to an organisation of today than outstanding academic qualifications. These skills separate the performers from non performers in today's organisations, which again focusses on the need for strong basic training at school.

My mentor, Fr. Joe Wickramasinghe's advice on the day he appointed me as Head Prefect at school was, 'Great leaders walk the talk'. To my mind Fr Joe walked the talk on strong values and ensure that education was well rounded. It is the same skills that get polished in the corporate world and the most outstanding personalities that emerge tend to be exceptionally strong on the basic skills that stemmed from schools.

One of the most respected school administrators is Fr Travis Gabriel the former Rector at St. Peter's College, Bambalapitiya.

He once invited me to be the chief guest at the Prefects Day. I asked him what he wanted me to share when I addressed the gathering.

His words were clear. "We do not need trophies, we must learn to play well and respect competition". Based on this basic grain the school has produced one of the best performances in the recent past not only in the sports arena but also in education. Everything points to the leader's ethos of what is right and what is wrong. I wish Fr Joe Wickramasinghe was alive to see how his training has produced another great Rector for the institution that he built.

Sri Lanka can pick up some of these lessons at the ruthless competition at club and at national level. The reason why China is becoming a superpower is because of the training that takes place at schools. Sri Lanka needs to take a lesson from China on this front.

Problem-solving

The latest research on the role of a school is not only just teaching educational content but also unearthing the skill of problem solving and solution seeking. This does not happen in the classroom but mostly by being involved in societies be it the Commerce Society, Sinhala Literary Society or the Drama Association.

If a child gets training on these areas, over time they grow to become a prefect and, thereafter, a student leader. This continues at the work place and the link to the Sri Lankan economy takes form.

Again this points to the strong leadership that must govern a school which fosters training to be good citizens and not just brilliant academics who excel at the Ordinary Level or Advanced Level examinations.

I have seen how people sail through the interviews and get into organisations but have have stunted their growth as they had not learned the basic social skills. They continue going stag for company functions when the people who get ahead make sure a partner comes along to key company events.

This is where being involved in organisations like Interact and taking part in Prefect Days of other schools becomes important. More importantly doing sports where girls and boys train together becomes important.

Its strange but in today's environment its only the employee who gets invited to company socials and hence one needs to have the skill of mixing around and make the evening enjoyable. This life skill is seen only in city schools given that schools outside Colombo are mostly mixed schools. An interesting dimension that has gone unnoticed.

Early interaction

Another interesting pick up from the likes of Fr. Travis Gabriel was that he personally drives career interactions between the students and private sector.

From the discussions I have had his ethos is that early interactions with people who have got traction in the private sector tends to form behaviour due to imitation.

This helps instil high order learning in areas of psycho-social, psycho-emotional and more importantly ethical behaviour which makes a lot of sense. I guess this pick-up can be extended to the private sector so that when it comes to succession, planning similar techniques can be followed especially in coach and mentor roles that are popular in today's business world.

Fr Travis recognises performance not only at formal events like assembly or prize -givings but also at informal settings like walking along the corridors.

He comments on outstanding performance be it academic or sports. His logic was that if one can instil self worth in a youngster then it builds self-respect and this entails them to stay away from the social evils of alcohol, smoking and now the new menace, drugs.

It's an interesting perspective given that we being an island nation the overall attitude to life is easy going and laid back which are characteristics of a country that is surrounded by water.

This is based on research done by Sri Jayewardenepura University. To break this cycle and move the country to a somewhat aggressive and performance based value must take place at the school. This is where the concept of reward becomes important in early life and this must be extended at graduate level so that the behaviour can become permanent.

Aggressive nature

Given that I have had the opportunity of working in India, the difference between Sri Lanka and India is the aggressive nature of the Indians and the drive to get ahead. I guess Sri Lanka will have to move to this domain if we are to be a top 30 country globally.

We have no option given the challenges in the global market place.

Hence we see the importance of the role of a school in the economy. Around 400,000 sit the Ordinary Level examination and 200,000 get ahead for the Advanced Level.

Around 40,000 move to post graduate studies in the government and private sector which is ten percent of the Ordinary Level students. Around 6,000 get an MBA which is below 1% of the population of Sri Lanka. This explains the role of a school in today's economy.

The author works for the United Nations (UNOPS) as Head of National Portfolio Development - Sri Lanka and the Maldives and a independent Board Director in many public and private sector organisations.