400 more schools to be under BOBLEP project in NE

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 07 January 2003, 17:52 GMT]
Four hundred ninety three more schools are to be brought under the Book Based Language Enrichment Project (BOBLEP) in the New Year 2003 by the ministry of education in the northeast province. The main objective of the BOBLEP is to help pupils improve their reading and language ability in Tamil, English and Sinhala, sources said.

The project funded by the International Development Agency of the World Bank is now being implemented in seventy-five schools in the northeast province. This year the number of schools will be increased to five hundred and sixty eight in the northeast. In the other seven provinces more than two thousand eight hundred schools are to be brought under the BOBLEP scheme, education sources said.

BOBLEP NE cor-odinator Mr.N.Anandaraj is seen explaining the objective of the project. Mr.Ilankumaran, LTTE Education development Division head with PD Mr.Mahalingam and Provincial Education Ministry Mr.Thiagalingam.

Mr.V.Ilankumaran, Head of the Tamil Eelam Education Development Division who attends the workshop on finalizing the action programme to implement educational development projects in the northeast Tuesday visited Trincomalee Methodist Girls College where students are taught by specialized teachers to gain reading and language in Tamil and English under the BOBLEP scheme. He observed students being taught in their mother tongue and English under the BOBLEP method by specialized teachers.

Mr.Ilankumaran witnessed events participated by students taught under the BOBLEP scheme, sources said.

North East Provincial Ministry Secretary Mr.R.Thiagalingam, Provincial Director of Education Mt.S.Mahalingam and the head of the Tamil Eelam Educational Development Society Rev.Fr Francis Joseph accompanied Mr.Ilankumaran. Principal of Methodist College Ms U.Jothinathan received Mr.Ilankumaran and other provincial education ministry officials. BOPLEP northeast co-ordinator Mr.N.Anandaraj and BOBLEP supervisor for NE Mr. A.R.Michael were also present.

Students learn under BOBLEP project.

Under BOBLEP project each school selected was given a large number of illustrated books in English, for their Grade 4 and 5 pupils. Most were storybooks, but there were some non-fiction books. English teachers in these schools were trained, in short workshops, to use the Shared Reading Method, so that pupils would learn to read and enjoy the books, education sources said.

Mr Ilankumaran was told that the results under the BOBLEP project showed that students had improved their reading at three times the rate of pupils in other schools. Large gains were also found in writing and listening skills of students who followed BOBLEP method, sources said.