A recent article in the Sunday Observer, (July 1st in fact) written by Nilma Dole, highlighted a problem, I have also noticed and was wondering about, and now it seems to make sense.In addition to smoking, alcoholism and drug abuse, hitting or cutting oneself are all various degrees of self harm. It is the latter two I wish to highlight, ...

There is nothing that the young hate more than being told what to do by those older than themselves, especially when they cannot see the logic of that request. It is even more important that consideration is given to their feelings whenever they are tasked with assignments by others above their age group.It is therefore best to gather a team ...

Rio 20+ is the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, currently being held in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil (June 2012). Sri Lanka has sent the largest official delegation of all delegations in the world! That is the Govt. delegation taking advantage of using a Sri Lankan Airlines plane for which the monthly leasing cost exceeds over US$300,000, costing over ...

The most important fact that young people MUST be taught from school and parents is the art of healthy eating. It is not necessarily an expensive option, but nutrition is an important aspect of education that is overlooked.It is important first as a young child to be given healthy food to eat. Few parents change their habits for their children, ...

In the previous entries there have been a litany of some of the typical shortcomings when interacting with youth and which youth must be aware of in their dealings with others to achieve their goals.One major annoyance that has not so far been referred to is the madness they appear to have. It is not one to send them to ...

I was recently heavily involved in organizing a youth event. Trying to engage the youth in organizing this event was a mammoth task in itself. Whilst they all see the potential benefit of such an event, they are unwilling to take responsibility for taking charge and doing the necessary work to make the event a success, instead nitpicking faults. There ...

A young person is guided in his outlook by those he associates with most. They are usually his circle of friends. Often after leaving school, they go together to classes, vocational training or even for jobs where they like to be with known people.Similarly whilst in employment, it is good to join a cause one is interested in and take ...

If you are thinking of entering active politics in the future, and you have a clear goal as to where you want to go, I would recommend, especially for those with meager resources to come in through the Opposition. When a party is in the Opposition, they have less of a demand on their resources. A young person can more ...

What divide is that? Have you not noticed that best in the league table of schools, the ones the Education Minister calls the 50 schools in the Country which out of 10,000the parents want to put their children into are ALL single sex schools.I rest my case as far as the parents are concerned. I do not know whether this ...

In contemporary Sri Lanka, the word of a young person is as good as hot air, only around for a few seconds. They are the most unreliable segment of the population and in organizing youth activities one has to be cognizant of this fact if one is to keep sane. There is a way to tackle this situation, as it ...

It is incredible that in the Sri Lankan family, children are loved and spoilt and then sacrifices are made to send children to distant prestigious schools, but parents lack the skills to instill moral and life skills on their children. After this expensive education, youth are completely lost not knowing how to find a suitable course for their skill and ...

I interviewed a girl who came with her father, and insisted on being inside the room, while I was talking to her to ascertain her skills. She was a graduate of Arts with an external degree from Kelaniya University that she received in 2009 and has since not held any job!I told her I will give a month’s rigorous training ...

Is this the first time or do I continue on this theme? If it is continuous it is because it is a topic that needs to be addressed time and time again, as lying especially by young people who are unable to account for their actions is a huge issue in 2012 Sri Lanka. Is it a problem all over ...

People born into a different period are classified as Baby boomers, Generation X and Y. I have yet to see the Z word used and I wonder if the A word is more appropriate. The reason being that for the first time in History this emerging generation will have fewer people in their respective age groups in most countries as ...

The Government via the Ministry of Higher Education, has decreed that all University Entrants including Buddhist Monks who have also obtained entrance to the University, must undergo ‘Leadership Training’ prior to entrance. This was first instituted with much fanfare last year and was opposed by most student groups as being a means to perpetuate the current policy of containing freedom ...

A characteristic of youth as compared with older people who have been around and done that! is that young people have an in built desire for instant gratification that involves very little planning. Older folks plan their lives. Often this is out of necessity with family commitments, responsibility, keeping up with the Jones’s and ‘bills’ to pay.It is important that ...

I attended a Bana Gedera yesterday for the brother of a staff member and as is traditional the Buddhist Priest comes sharp at 7.30 and gives his bana for about 45minutes to an hour before he leaves, having been given a thank you in kind, and then the food is served for those present.To a fault, the over 35s and ...

The fault of the education system regarding the issues raised above, hold back youth from getting ahead and venturing into the unknown. It is this unknown that I wish to elaborate on here.What is the unknown? It is a space that no one has gone to before. It is a risk that may or may not work, but will only ...

The latest twist in the tale of the Z score calamity is that a large number of students who personally believe that their rights have been violated have filed complaints with the HRC, hoping the latter would intercede on their behalf for them to obtain justice.Put simply, the calculation of the Z score is only understood by a few experts ...

This method was introduced a few years ago to kill two birds with one stone. One was to restrict entry into the University as there are only places for 15% or less of those who sit A level exams. The second was to arrive at a different cut off mark for districts so that there is a fair representation across ...