Counselling services for schoolchildren to commence Jan. 2018

Th e i n t ro d u c t i o n of Counselling services in schools will be implemented from January next year, to improve the quality of the mental health of the students.

"The Ministry of Education (MoE) intends to have 3,000 suitably qualified teachers to conduct counselling services for students," an official said.

The recruitment of teachers will take place in the next few months, with priority given to those with qualifications in counselling, and given relevant training

The move follows revelations that more than 3,850 students have dropped out or schools, with some of them citing harassment by fellow students and finding it difficult to cope with the pressure.

A Ministry official said that, initially, the service will be available for schools which have more than 300 students and for students from Grade 6 to GCE (A/L).

He said information could be provided to the MoE if there were children who have dropped out of school, so that the MoE could intervene and ensure the student continues his/her education.

Education Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said students as well as teachers could benefit from these counselling services.

She added that, "Solutions can be found for many of the country's problems through Education. Students should engage in extracurricular activities too, as they gain a lot of experience from it."

Scholarship worth over Rs 1 million were distributed among the students, with 16 successful Grade 5 Scholarship students receiving Rs 15,000 each, while 30 successful O/ L students receiving Rs 20,000 each and 3 successful A/ L students receiving Rs 25,000 each.

In addition, another 10 children were awarded scholarships worth Rs 100,000, with 3 students who passed the Grade 5 Scholarship exam receiving Rs 5,000 each, 4 students who passed the O/L exam receiving Rs 10,000 each and 3 students who passed the A/ L exam receiving Rs 15,000 each.