Need to change school uniform: Education Minister

The Education Ministry was mulling changing the school uniforms and the dress code for pregnant teachers of the State schools, based on the different climates of different districts so as to make it comfortable for the children and teachers, Education Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said yesterday.

While addressing a ceremony at Maliyadeva College in Kurunegala yesterday, Minister Kariyawasam said school children were facing a lot of difficulties to keep their white uniforms clean. “School uniforms should be comfortable. Schools may have the right to select their suitable uniform for their children but it still remains a question as to why those schools don’t do so.

In Districts like Moneragala I see school children wearing uniforms with neck ties,” the Minister said.he said there should be a way to get rid of such uniforms and to switch to a more comfortable uniform. Meanwhile, he also said that pregnant teachers used to wear the traditional saree to school even during the advanced stages of pregnancy. He said it would be a very uncomfortable and unsuitable dress for them. “I was planning to discuss the issue with the committee to take a decision on changing pregnant teachers’ dress. There are 237,000 teachers in the country and the majority of them are female teachers. The way we approach these issues is wrong,” he said. “Other countries have gone too far with new ideas. The time has come to think of a proper education in a proper way to put our education on par with international standards,” he noted.