The Sri Lankan schooling system is both pedagogically and conceptually flawed. A long-standing history of differential treatment based on ethnic claims for the land as well as more recent social pressures in the face of the civil war have accentuated this distorted system. The decision taken in 1956 to segregate schools based on language has contributed to the creation and perpetuation of this conflict. Hence, Sri Lanka has a dual constraining system where on the one hand, a faulty syllabus is promoting biased norms while on the other hand; segregation is fostering animosity among students belonging to different ethnic groups. Corrective measures in the wake of recognizing the dangers of the education system initially focused on the curriculum alone. Redesigning textbooks and introducing more ‘peace-generating’ subjects such as ‘Conflict Resolution’ have been some of the initiatives taken by the government. This approach lacks potential for success as students rarely get to interact and solve problems via participation. Hence, more recent measures have concentrated on getting students to socialize in school settings via language camps and inter-school cricket matches. The latter approach has had a more positive outcome on peace building in an island that has a fervent love for cricket. However, the strong influence of politics on schooling has meant that certain ‘root-causes’ of racial conflict are downplayed in education; a problem that needs to be urgently addressed if schooling is to truly bring about ethnic harmony.
The article examines the importance of peace education in Sri Lanka and explores how cricket could be used as a potential tool for reconciliation
Peace education, sport and conflict resolution, cricket, Sri Lanka
