Two neighboring schools, two languages

The majority language in Sri Lanka is Sinhalese and the minority speak Tamil. I visited two schools just across the hill from each other and one was a Tamil school and the other Sinhalese. There is a Peace Corps Volunteer at each school. One learned Sinhalese and the other Tamil.

There was a 28 year civil war waged by Tamil separatists who ultimately lost, but the split remains. Sinhalese is
the dominant language. Among the Peace Corps host country staff the Tamil speakers also speak Sinhalese, but the Sinhalese do not speak Tamil. And all schools teach English, so in some cases that becomes the common language.

At the first school Edarshan was my student guide. He introduced each grade and could cite how many students were in each class. His English is fluent and he wants to be a doctor. One teacher said, sadly, after studying medicine many new doctors immigrate to other countries where they can earn more.

The second school was just a tuk tuk ride away. The principal of the school is actually a Buddhist monk and holds a place of reverence in the community. One student, Udit, at the second school, is a self described tech geek and wants to be a software engineer. He immediately identified my iPhone 16 and told me I should have waited, because the iPhone 17 just came out and the prices went down on the 16.Read more