Government Science College, Matale

Government Science College, Matale ( Sinhala : රජයේ විද්‍යා විද්‍යාලය )
Location
Matale Matale Sri Lanka
Information
Type	Provincial
Motto	Pali: විද්‍යා ප්‍රගුපතං ධනං Vidya Pragupatan Dhanan (Science For Progress)
Established	15 February 1954;67 years ago (1954-02-15)
Principal	Sashikala Senadeera
Grades	10–13
Gender	Mixed
Age range	15 to 19
Enrollment	500
Language	Sinhala, English
Affiliation	Buddhist

Government Science College, Matale ( GSC ) is a co-educational government secondary school located in Matale, Sri Lanka. It was established in 1954. It developed a reputation for high academic standards.

Mission

The school's mission is to provide educational opportunities for students from Mother Science College seeking help, in order to develop skills enabling them to lead productive lives.

History

This school opened on 15 February 1954. The original staff consisted of Wimala Silva and S. Manual Pillai, with S. Rathnasabapathy as the principal.

The first half decade of Science College reflects Rathnasabapathy's personality and dedication. His philosophy was to advance the college's educational and environmental conditions.

Although large schools operated in Matale district when Science College was founded, no facility was dedicated to promoting higher education in science. V. T. Nanayakkara, the member for the Matale electorate, set out to correct this deficiency. The result was GSC. The school accepted students from districts beyond Matale such as Kandy, Kurunegala, Anuradhapura, Pollonnaruwa, Kegalle, Badulla, as well as the most remote district on the island, Jaffna. The students who studied there included Sinhalese, Tamil, Muslim and Burgher.

In 1954, the school consisted of 40 students and two staff members but doubled in size that year.

In the 1970s, enrollment increased to 250, and later exceeded 500. During those first decades, the focus was to promote as many students as possible to university level.

In the 1960s, government policy of teaching science in both Sinhala and Tamil forced Rathnasabapathy to transfer to Jaffna. This became a turning point. Second principal H. R. P. Rupasinghe introduced cricket. Students proved successful in sports as well as academics, playing at a high level in cricket, field hockey and netball.

In the 1980s, the department of education made the decision to end O/L classes, accommodating only advanced classes. This increased the number of students able to participate in higher education.

The college developed a "Past Pupils Association" (alumni), with branches in Colombo, Anuradapura, as well as in Australia. They assist the college in both its academic and sports endeavors.

Houses

Students are divided into three houses, named "Einstein", "Lavoisier" and "Darwin".

School song

The school song was composed by Mr. Thillekeratne, a teacher at GSC during the late 1970s, after an unsuccessful attempt to get a renowned songwriter in Sri Lanka to write one.

Sports

The School's big match is played with St. Thomas' College, Matale, with the name "Battle of the Golds". The 21st Big match occasion was held on 27–28 March 2015.[1][2]

Principals

S. Ratnasabhapathy (1954–60)

H. R. P. Rupasinghe (1960–64)

E. P. W. Helapitage (1964–67)

H. D. E. Premawardhana (1967–69)

A. Bopitiya (1969–70)

L. M. Perera (1970–72)

C. A. S. B. Silva (1972–73)

L. M. Perera (1973–76)

K. B. Weragama (1976–80)

A. Ekanayake (1980–81)

R. B. Ekanayake (1981–85)

A. H. Godawitharana (1985–86)

A. Ekanayake (1986–90)

G. K. W. K. Atipola (1990–2015)

H. M. B. Hearath (2015–2016)

C. N. Hettiarachchi (2016 to present)

^[1]

References

1. Science College,Matale