The "Madhya Maha Vidyalaya'(Central College)''" concept (
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
: Central College) is a type of
state school in
Sri Lanka. Originally mooted in the 1930s by
C.W.W. Kannangara, 54 Central Colleges were founded between 1943 and 1947 as part of his initiative to establish
free education
Free education is education funded through government spending or charitable organizations rather than tuition funding. Many models of free higher education have been proposed. Primary school and other comprehensive or compulsory education is fr ...
in
Sri Lanka. The first of these was C. W. W. Kannangara Central College in
Matugama
Mathugama ( si, මතුගම, ta, மத்துகம) is a semi urban town surrounded by mountains. It is an electorate of the Kalutara district, in Western Province, Sri Lanka. The town is located to the south of Colombo.
Mathugama is ...
, followed by others in areas such as
Horana,
Weeraketiya,
Kekirawa
Kekirawa Divisional Secretariat is a Divisional Secretariat of Anuradhapura District, of North Central Province, Sri Lanka.
History
Prehisoric period
Kekirawa has a long history which goes back to the pre-historical era. The ruins of th ...
,
Kattankudy
Kattankudy ( ta, காத்தான்குடி, si, කාත්තාන්කුඩි; also transliterated as "Kathankudy") is a township near the city of Batticaloa on the eastern coast of Sri Lanka. The town is predominantly popula ...
,
Mawathagama,
Veyangoda,
Piliyandala
Piliyandala ( si, පිළියන්දල, ta, பிலியந்தலை) is a suburb in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is situated approximately south of Colombo.
Piliyandala clock tower
According to local residents and documentation, P ...
and
Dickwella.
With more central colleges established since the original drive in the 1940s, most such schools are now funded and administered by the local
provincial council, while a few, by virtue of their status as ''National Schools'', come under the direct purview of the
Ministry of Education
An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...
.
Central colleges to be upgraded
/ref>
In 2008, the 54 schools founded by Kannangara changed their names from "''Madhya Maha Vidyalaya''" to "''Madhya Vidyalaya''" in a bid to establish a separate identity from other ''Madhya Maha Vidyalaya''s established later on.
See also
*Education in Sri Lanka
Education in Sri Lanka has a long history that dates back two millennia. While the Constitution of Sri Lanka does not provide free education as a fundamental right, the constitution mentions that 'the complete eradication of illiteracy and the a ...
* Wickramabahu Central College
References
External links
Dehiwala Central College, Sri-Lanka (Dehiwala Madhya Vidyalaya)Henegama Central College (Henegama Madhya Maha Vidyalaya)Taxila Central College, Horana, Sri-Lanka (Taxila Madhya Vidyalaya)
{{coord missing, Sri Lanka
Education in Sri Lanka