A Throwback to the Secondary Level English Language Teaching Programme at the Pirivenas in Sri Lanka: A Perspective Achieved within the Walls

The English language proficiency of the Buddhist clergy studying at the universities in Sri Lanka is observed to be generally low. Educational practitioners and policymakers attribute the pathetic situation experienced with their English to the lack of emphasis on and the general disdain the young Buddhist monks maintain for the study of English during their secondary-level education at the Pirivenas. Nevertheless, with the increasing demand for English language proficiency in the face of globalization, the Pirivena students who later join the universities, particularly those who seek to advance their career as Buddhist scholars or missionaries in international contexts, face a huge barrier while carrying out their studies in the English medium. Even though there is a pressing need for research on this phenomenon, studies on the low proficiency level of English among the Pirivena students are rare. Against that background, the present study strives to address this gap by conducting an investigation into the perspectives of the Pirivena students on their English education experiences at the Pirivenas through the use of a questionnaire, interviews, and statistical analyses. The survey involved a cohort of 18 undergraduates and 15 graduates from two leading Buddhist universities in Sri Lanka, in order to provide a more comprehensive analysis of the issue at hand and suggest effective solutions based on their subjective points of view.