The Department of English Language Teaching (DELT) of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura is committed to developing English language proficiency of students in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Technology and Faculty of Engineering of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura. Moreover, the DELT provides required professional support to the Faculty of Medical Sciences. Also it stands ever ready to help the students of any other faculty if and when the need arises.
In the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, the role of DELT is not parallel to any other university in the country as it has initiated an academic programme where all the students are given English instruction/exposure of two hours on each working day (from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.) providing 150 hours of teaching learning exposure per semester which comes to 300 hours per academic year offering six credits for the two semesters.
An optional Diploma in English course is offered to the second year students of the university. This is open to any second year student of the university provided that he/she has passed the first year compulsory English course offered by the university. The course has been designed in a manner that it also offers an exit point whereby those intending to leave early could earn a Certificate in English after completing 225 hours of face to face teaching. Those students who successfully complete the Certificate in English course and wish to further enhance their proficiency in the target language could continue up to Diploma level and complete the course after covering a total of 450 hours of face to face interactions with the resource persons of the department.
The overall objective of these English courses is to enhance students’ knowledge of English through the development of their reading, writing, listening and speaking skills. Consequently, students’ confidence to use the language competently will be heightened eliminating any hesitation or fear towards English. This is approached through the integration of a variety of language and personality development activities such as drama, singing, poetry recitation, presentations, library sessions, critical reading sessions, LMS sessions and community projects. The key focuses of the curriculums are to present the language through a context, which had proven to be a very effective mode of language acquisition. The students who successfully complete these programmes are expected to gain a sound knowledge of the structures of English language as well as be competent in communicating in English. Thus, they will be more desirable candidates for the corporate sector.
Nationwide UTEL test
A standardized test is administered annually to all students of the University system in Sri Lanka by the UGC and the Ministry of Higher Education. The test is designed to evaluate all four language skills and is done at two levels. Level one is an online examination covering reading and listening. Candidates who pass level one are eligible for level two which is a speech and writing test. Successful candidates will be awarded a certificate by the Ministry of Higher Education and the UGC. The DELT strongly encourages students to take this examination.
