EF 511- SOCIAL PROJECT PROJECT PROPOSAL

ARACHCHI, I.T.G.B. SAMARASEKARA, C.S. PERERA,U.L.S.S. ARIYARATHNE,A.S. ARIYARATHNA,I.L.

(E/07/023) (E/07/311) (E/07/255) (E/07/027) (E/06/022)

Project Overview
Title : A seminar on basic household electrical installation and basic electronics, aimed on youth/school students, to guide them on a proper technical career. As the initial step this event will be carried out in the Gankanda Central College, Pelmadulla.

Administrative Information
Members :I.T.G.B. Arachchi C.S. Samarasekara I.L. Ariyarathna A.S. Ariyarathne U.L.S.S. Perera : Prof. S. D. Pathirana : Faulty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya. (E/07/023) (E/07/311) (E/06/022) (E/07/027) (E/07/255)

Project Supervisor Recipient Institution

Partiipating Institution : Gankanda Central College, Pelmadulla.

Objective To improve the technical knowledge related to proper electricity consumption and to give the technical knowhow to troubleshoot various day to day problems occurring in electrical wiring systems in houses and to introduce them to the basic electronic technology. To build up a career guidance system within the school so that they have realistic ambitions, goals which they could follow from their early ages. To expose the available current technological aspects to inspire them in following technology related careers. To guide unemployed youth, on the available employment options on technical side especially in electrical and electronics stream .

Problems and Justification In Sri Lanka, it is a common problem that the students passing out with average results at GCE A/L who are failing on university admission poses a job threat. Also those who get admission to the university under physical sciences streams are not guided properly to select a suited technical education. In that case the present society blames the government for not giving employment opportunities to this unskilled youth. But nobody is caring about a lasting solution for this matter. It is not possible to wait for the government to take measures for this. Thus it was felt necessary to eradicate this issue in a novel way. Today the whole world knows that China has the biggest market share in consumer electronics and other electronic items. All the items that are being invented in countries like USA, UK, Germany and Japan are being duplicated and sold for a reduced price for a set of selected customers. Mostly the customers and consumers are from third world countries. China has achieved this feat by supporting the small scale business within the country. As an example, assembling phones in a common house hold industry where many people are self employed. Not only do they make a great living, but they also support the growth of the whole country. In China the people have a better hope for the future than the Sri Lankans. Another thing is that the skilled labor is available so that the foreign investors can easily settle their branches and provide employment opportunities. We Sri Lankans can also do the same thing by promoting the small and medium scale business within the country. We should raise the awareness of the government about the potential behind this. Also another problem which makes this worse is that when compared with other countries, the technical workforce added to the society annually does not have the capacity, expertise or capability for innovations and discoveries that would uplift the countrys economy and well being of the society. This technical workforce comprises of engineers, scientists, technicians etc... And is ultimately a burden to the country because they are not performing up to the expected standards. Most of these technical experts were products of the free education system .So they have a duty to do some thing in return for the country in return for what the country did for them. So as engineering undergraduates we felt obliged to find a solution to these issues. Thus in our discussions we came to the common understanding that there are several reasons which result in this problem. The main issue is with the education system of our country. Our education system does not encourage students to think creatively and arrive at a solution. It only focuses on the final out come or the answer. Students have no idea or they even dont care that there are other interesting and easy ways of approaching the problem. So they end up like parrots who memorize all the details taught to them. Due to this reason there will be nothing new and because of that we find technical experts who are the best in following orders but are not capable of issuing orders or thinking new designs. We also believe that there should be a career guidance system in the initial stages of education. That means it should start from the school. Today students dont have a clear path to follow in achieving their goals. It is our idea that there should be a clear career path in the initial stages and a counseling system

that would enable the students to make their choices correctly. This will also eradicate the misconception that the only good occupations are doctors, engineers and lawyers. By this new system the students may get a better overview of the career opportunities that are available to them and they will be able to build up a realistic ambition to achieve in future. Another problem that we focused on was the societys misconception about the careers. The society only recognizes an individual only if he is a doctor, engineer or a lawyer. It is time to change this concept. If all the school leavers become doctors or engineers it will be a crucial problem for the sustatainability of the society. So as engineering undergraduates we are the ones who are capable in changing the societys view on the occupation. In developed countries there is no such thing as a special recognition for a doctor or an engineer. It values everybodys careers equally because no one can survive without one another. It is a common fact that has to be understood by Sri Lankans as well. So it is our duty to show this to the society and change the mind set of the whole society so that everybody gets the benefits of their careers. So it is of greatest importance that there should be a change the societys attitude towards technical education. Today most school leavers are not encouraged to apply for technical colleges and vocational training institutes. Instead they only apply for a white collar job. Due to that there is huge shortage of skilled labor within the country. So even though there are job opportunities there are no qualified candidates. This is the hidden problem that the general public doesnt understand. So our intention is to raise the awareness of the general public and about this opportunity and as to represent the general public we have chosen school students .We plan to accomplish this objective by organizing a seminar on electrical installation and basic electronics. We there by expect the students to understand about the basic technical details on electric installation and to troubleshoot small problems that they encounter and also we try to introduce them to make circuits that would be applicable in day to day life problems and to do inventions. As engineering undergraduates we focus on the technical and scientific knowledge. We try to inspire them to know about the current technological knowledge by introducing PIC programming, networking, electrical installation, a basic introduction on programming, electronic product design and manufacturing. We plan to keep this as an ongoing process so that when they face difficulties we will tell them how to use internet and other resources which includes all those discussed technologies and some of the most recent and upto date knowledges. We will also provide them a platform to discuss within themselves about the problems that they faced and we are going to support them with technical expertise which will ultimately enhance our knowledge as well. We found that it is not enough to give the technical knowledge only. Therefore we make them understand about the job opportunities other than engineering since it is our relevant field. Everybody wants to be an engineer due to various reasons. Either they like it or their parents have advised them to select engineering or some does it just because the others are doing. We plan to advice them that they only have to do what they like or they will repent whole of their life for not choosing the right occupation. We will try to get them to understand that there are so many opportunities in the technical field so that they can get the best use of their abilities and knowledge. So ultimately they may be able to earn a better salary and lead a more successful life than even the engineers.

Finally we are going to achieve our objectives by a series of seminars organized in schools in rural areas to enlighten the students as well as the academic staff on the above mentioned issues. As the first step we have chosen Gankanda Central College, Pelmadulla to conduct our first seminar. And it is our expectation to make this an on going event, by collaborating with other universities and technical institutes in future. This will be achieved by handing over this program to our junior batch mates who also have an interest on following this course unit.