Community Participation in Rural Development Project Implementation: Case Study of Kandaketiya Divisional Secretariat in Sri Lanka

Rural development projects are advancing slowly in rural areas partly due to a lack of community participation in project implementation.  In the Sri Lankan context, state-governed projects are often planned by the Ministries and Departments, yet beneficiaries get the chance to engage with projects at the implementation stage. Divisional Secretariats play a major role when implementing projects at the rural level in Sri Lanka. Hence, this study aims to explore the reasons for lower community participation in rural development project implementation in a selected divisional secretariat called Kandaketiya in Sri Lanka, to examine issues encountered in community participation in rural development project implementation, and to make suggestions to increase active community participation. The study used a qualitative case study design by collecting data from the field officers engaged in rural project implementation and community members separately. Six focus group discussions were employed, and data analysis was done thematically.  As the reasons for lower community participation, the study found that lack of awareness, negative community perception, administrative and management issues of government institutes, time constraints, geographical barriers, and limited infrastructure availability. The study revealed that issues encountered in community participation in rural development project implementation as intergenerational conflicts and poor teamwork, insufficient monitoring by field officers, poor officer-community relationship, and lack of transparency in financial matters. Introducing a daily wage system, enhancing communication facilities, conducting need analysis tests, increasing financial transparency, conducting community awareness and capacity-building training for officers, and introducing people-centric project designs were stated as suggestions for increasing community participation. Keywords - Community Participation, Project Implementation, Rural Developmen

Digitalization of Public Service Delivery: A Case of Immigration and Emigration Department of Sri Lanka

Adaptation of digital technologies leads public sector organizations to innovate and tap their potentials. The Immigration and Emigration Department of Sri Lanka (IEDSL) has commenced digitalization of its functions during the last decade. It is one of most efficient “one-stop” service centers that cater the requirements of 2,500 citizens on a daily basis. Therefore, this paper intends to explore the adoption of digitalization in the Immigration and Emigration Department of Sri Lanka and to identify the lesson learnt from digitalization process at IEDSL. This is a qualitative study which employs the case study approach. The study uses both the primary and secondary data sources. Primary data are collected through the in-depth interviews with five senior officials involved in digitalization process at IEDSL and secondary data sources are annual performance reports, other publications and the website of the organization. The IEDSL has digitalized the entire cycle of passport issuing process. This initiation enabled the IEDSL to provide efficient service delivery by reducing public waiting time and transaction cost for the public, maintaining an equal access to the service, and making information freely available. Also, it enabled inter-link between the Immigration and Emigration Department and the Airport Authority. This paper highlighted on the lessons learnt from digitalization experience of IEDSL as robust leadership, promote employee engagement, perceive continuous development through collaborations, improving the services through introducing value added services

Cultural Diversity and Classroom Experience: A Phenomenological Case of Graduate Students’ Response to New Classroom Experience

In this study we analyse students’ lived experiences in a cross-cultural classroom context, with the aim of understanding: (1) What is the impact of a culturally diverse classroom experience on graduate school students’ learning? (2) Which larger ramifications, if any, exist from this experience? The participants were PhD and Masters Students in a university in Thailand. This was a phenomenological study. Themes emerging from complex cultural practices of international students, professors and Thai students inform, hinder and promote learning. Findings from this study can inform pedagogy particularly at graduate school level, where cultural diversity matters in classroom experience

Exploring Online Learning Experiences of Undergraduates in a Selected National University, Sri Lanka

The abrupt eruption of the COVID-19 pandemic forced drastic shifts in doing many things under new normal conditions. Consequently, the education sector too made a giant leap from traditional physical mode to an online learning method, giving a novel experience to students. Online learning is a form of education in which the main elements include the physical separation of teachers and students during instruction and the use of various technologies to facilitate student-teacher and student-student communication. Hence, the objective of this paper is to explore problems faced by undergraduates in online learning in a national university in Sri Lanka. This is a qualitative study that used a convenient sample of 30 undergraduates who have undergone both the traditional learning mode and online learning method. Data collection was carried out through a self-administered, semi-structured questionnaire and a thematic analysis was employed for the study. The study found that undergraduates are experiencing a variety of problems in online learning as; technical issues, absence of conducive learning environment, financial burden, issues encountered from lecturers, pedagogical issues, and personal issues. This study provides useful implications for both the education policy formulators and educational institutions for the improvement of their online learning methods. Keywords: Online Learning, Undergraduates, National Universit