An English teacher's way of giving back

Dinesh did not know the alphabet until he was 11 years old. He learnt to form sentences when he was 14.

“English language was not given much importance in schools in our area. We did not have any after-school classes or private tuitions, either,” he recalls.

Education was an option more than a right to children in Navithanveli as the area battled through a war. Schools served as camps for families who were displaced than a place to study. Learning English was a luxury and English language was one of the most-neglected in the area, and the subject had lower pass rates.

When the war was over and the families began to resettle, World Vision partnered with a local organisation to implement "English for Life," which was executed under the advice and supervision of Zonal Education Office of Sammanthurai.

Since G.C.E Ordinary Level (O/L) results were the immediate concern, and grade 9 is considered the first step towards the G.C.E O/L exam, World Vision called for a meeting of grade 9 students and their parents from its working area. They were informed about the new project to improve the English in the area. The classes were conducted after school, initially at the World Vision premises in the area, then at a building behind the Savalakkadai Divisional Secretariat office.

“I was one of the six students from my village, and totally 18 students were in the first batch,” Dinesh shares his experience about the classes. The classes focused mainly on spoken English, a change from the Sri Lankan system where students are burdened with English grammar from the start before they learn basic sentences.

“Our teacher brought audio system and played British audio files, including news," Dinesh continues. "At the start, I did not understand anything. We did not have the level of knowledge to understand any of them. Only after that, we started learning English step by step."

For Dinesh and others, English was still foreign, but they started speaking English thanks to one rule from their teacher: "Our teacher had a rule: Whether it is right or not, we could only speak in English in the class," Dinesh recalls with gratitude.

Dinesh also had the opportunity to attend a World Vision workshop in Nepal in 2011. "It was the first time I travelled outside of Sri Lanka. Participants from seven countries including the Philippines, India, and Nepal took part in it. It was conducted solely in English. That is when I realised the importance of English as an international language," Dinesh says.

Dinesh did excellent in the English Language at the G.C.E Ordinary Level exam. Once he started feeling confident in his English, he started teaching English to others. As like most good things, it started at home. “My elder sister and younger brother were the sacrificial lambs,” says a grinning Dinesh.

He also helped the weaker students in his area and made sure that all of them passed the English Language paper. "It was a success. When you feel that the students have got good results due to your teaching, it makes you happy," claims Dinesh. Seeing the impact, the parents of the students from his area requested him for classes for their children.

After he completed G.C.E Advanced Level, he decided to follow his newfound love: English. Hence, he started following the Higher National Diploma (HND) in English, a two and a half year course. With one year remaining to complete the course, he wants to become a permanent teacher in a school, while continuing to learn English and further himself.

Dinesh, currently teaches nearly 70 students at Namahal Vidyalayam in Navithanveli and more than a hundred students in private tuition classes. For students who cannot afford fees, he teaches free of charge. He is also teaching English to a batch of ten teachers who want to improve their language skills. In addition to teaching, he is the de facto "letter writer" for his community. Any letters they might need to get official work done, Dinesh is their go-to man.

As an immediate action to contribute to the community, Dinesh is starting a tuition class for his area students at his house. "I am going to teach all of them free of charge," he says. "Irrespective of their family's wealth, I want to teach them for free. I am hoping to do this once I complete my HND course."

For him, personally, Dinesh wants to continue to learn English. “I want to study English as much as I can, for as long as I can,” he says.