A parliamentary committee has reviewed progress on equipping schools with smart classrooms, internet connectivity and digital devices, and was told that preparations are complete to extend the country’s curriculum reforms to Grades 2 and 6 in 2027.
The review took place at a special meeting of the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education, held at Parliament on 22 October, the Daily Mirror reported.
It was chaired by Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education Dr. Harini Amarasuriya.
What MPs were briefed on
Members were briefed on the schools technology programme alongside updates on the Revised National Curriculum Framework (2026) and the School-Level Assessment and Certification Framework.
The committee also reviewed the reforms introduced for Grade 1 in January 2026, and preparations to extend them to Grades 2 and 6 in 2027.
Education Ministry Secretary Nalaka Kaluwewa said the reform process is being implemented under five key pillars, supported by a National Steering Committee and five subcommittees assigned to oversee each area. He said the reforms commenced in 2025, in line with the policies of the National Education Commission.
NewsFirst reported that the secretary told the committee all necessary preparations have now been completed for the 2027 extension, and described the smart classroom work as aimed at reducing the digital gap in education.
The case made for the curriculum
National Institute of Education Director General Senior Professor O.G. Dayaratne Banda said the reforms aim to strengthen students’ knowledge, ethical values and skills, and to prepare them for the future through a holistic, outcome-based education system.
He said the revised curriculum framework was developed through a structured process based on foundational research and Cabinet approval, so that curriculum changes are guided by evidence and national policy rather than by administrative preference.
What the briefing did not quantify
The two filings agree closely on the officials, the framework names and the 2027 timetable. Neither attaches a number to the technology programme.
No filing states how many schools have received smart classrooms, how many are to receive them, what the programme costs, or who is supplying the equipment. A progress review reported without a figure for progress leaves the central question — how far the rollout has actually got — unanswered.
Deputy Minister of Education and Higher Education Dr. Madhura Seneviratne, Deputy Minister of Vocational Education Nalin Hewage, MPs and ministry officials attended.
Not reported
Neither filing reports how many schools currently lack internet connectivity, gives a completion target for the rollout, or says whether the Grade 2 and Grade 6 extension requires new textbooks or teacher training to be in place first.
Neither reports the content of the Revised National Curriculum Framework beyond its name, nor whether the School-Level Assessment and Certification Framework changes existing public examinations.
On sourcing. Two verified newsrooms filed independently on the same committee meeting and agree on the officials quoted, the five-pillar structure, the 2025 start and the 2027 extension. Ada Derana could not be checked, its site having returned a CloudFront block to this desk for more than a month.
Sources: Daily Mirror, NewsFirst.
