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At the request of Nihal Seneviratne, Chairman, Loyalty Pledge Management Committee (LPMC) of Royal College Union (RCU), Education Minister for the Northern Province, Thambirasa Kurukularasa, nominated Pandiyankulam MahaVidyalam for the friendship building project to be initiated by the Royal College Prefects’ Council 13/14.
"The intention was to target a school with a small roll as they are largely neglected unlike larger schools. Let alone the huge gulf between Colombo schools and PMV, we
noticed a vast difference between it and other Jaffna schools despite being located within the same province," recalled Navindu.
Reviving a friendship
A mixed school with around 350 students, PMV’s most pressing issue is the lack of teachers. The students depend on a teacher who comes from Jaffna as their sole source of ‘new information.’ Despite all these drawbacks the Royal prefects found their perseverance of the students inspiring.
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"We noticed immense sporting talent at PMV. Even without a coach, their girls’ volleyball team achieved the sixth place in the National Championship."
The main objective of the three-day visit was to build a long lost bridge of friendship as Navindu asserts. Apart from gifting the school with numerous reading materials, some provided by EDEX of the RCU and memorabilia to the staff, the visitors shared basic rugby and volleyball techniques with the PMV students. They had also done some team building activities and played leadership games to bring out the hidden skills of the students and to inspire them on possible career avenues.
Exceptional hospitality
Royalists were provided lodging at PMV Library and also Stanley College, Jaffna for a day. "The hospitality we received was exceptional," says Navindu recalling the warm welcome completed with a procession and garlands. The wake-up knock accompanied by tea and traditional sweets followed by a well bath all accounted for a memorable stay. "For most of us, it was a first time experience at a well," he added.
Sharing the harrowing experience of war with the PMV students was yet another poignant moment. "Realizing what they had gone through which we experienced only on the small screen made us realize how much we’ve got to be content with. The sporadic learning students had received due to constant interruption by war had left them behind the times."
Though the school has seen some bright days with the Mahindodaya Laboratory and an ICT lab provided by the UNICEF, the teachers remain in the school only for short periods due to its intense remoteness. Asked as to how they overcame the language barrier during interaction, Navindu replied, "since there were a few Tamil speaking prefects in our group, we managed nicely."
Having tasted Rio ice cream, one of Jaffna’s favourites, and having visited kovils, the Royal prefects took the road back to Colombo full of memories of a lasting friendship. They also extended their sincere thanks to Mr. Upali Gunasekera, Principal, Royal College for his unfailing support in completing their project.
"The intention was to target a school with a small roll as they are largely neglected unlike larger schools. Let alone the huge gulf between Colombo schools and PMV, we
Reviving a friendship
A mixed school with around 350 students, PMV’s most pressing issue is the lack of teachers. The students depend on a teacher who comes from Jaffna as their sole source of ‘new information.’ Despite all these drawbacks the Royal prefects found their perseverance of the students inspiring.
"We noticed immense sporting talent at PMV. Even without a coach, their girls’ volleyball team achieved the sixth place in the National Championship."
The main objective of the three-day visit was to build a long lost bridge of friendship as Navindu asserts. Apart from gifting the school with numerous reading materials, some provided by EDEX of the RCU and memorabilia to the staff, the visitors shared basic rugby and volleyball techniques with the PMV students. They had also done some team building activities and played leadership games to bring out the hidden skills of the students and to inspire them on possible career avenues.
Exceptional hospitality
Royalists were provided lodging at PMV Library and also Stanley College, Jaffna for a day. "The hospitality we received was exceptional," says Navindu recalling the warm welcome completed with a procession and garlands. The wake-up knock accompanied by tea and traditional sweets followed by a well bath all accounted for a memorable stay. "For most of us, it was a first time experience at a well," he added.
Sharing the harrowing experience of war with the PMV students was yet another poignant moment. "Realizing what they had gone through which we experienced only on the small screen made us realize how much we’ve got to be content with. The sporadic learning students had received due to constant interruption by war had left them behind the times."
Though the school has seen some bright days with the Mahindodaya Laboratory and an ICT lab provided by the UNICEF, the teachers remain in the school only for short periods due to its intense remoteness. Asked as to how they overcame the language barrier during interaction, Navindu replied, "since there were a few Tamil speaking prefects in our group, we managed nicely."
Having tasted Rio ice cream, one of Jaffna’s favourites, and having visited kovils, the Royal prefects took the road back to Colombo full of memories of a lasting friendship. They also extended their sincere thanks to Mr. Upali Gunasekera, Principal, Royal College for his unfailing support in completing their project.
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