Head of the Department
Dr. W.A.K.C.P. Warnapala
Senior Lecturer Grade 1
PhD. (Michigan State, USA), MA (Michigan State, USA),
B.A. (Hons.) (Peradeniya, SL)
Phone: 011 -2758309 (Office)
I warmly and wholeheartedly welcome each one of you to the website of the Department of English and Linguistics of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka!
Our Department is a lovely home to a small, but strong and smart community of staff and students. We are a highly engaged, welcoming and friendly Department. Currently we house over 1000 students who have enrolled on our wide range of undergraduate (both internal and external degrees) postgraduate-taught and postgraduate-research academic programmes. Our overall aim is to offer each one of our students a space in which all who work genuinely and passionately can prosper, achieve their potential and do the very best in life with English – English Language, English Literature and/or English Language Teaching. As we treat one another with humanity and respect, we can achieve our aim: as we thrive on hard work through concerted attempts, we can achieve our aim. Our strength lies in unity in diversity.
It is indeed with a sense of pride that I highlight that it is the Department of English and Linguistics of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura which pioneered the TESL programme at an Undergraduate level. The department also is the forerunner in offering English Literature and English Language studies at the Undergraduate level, giving equal focus to both the streams. It is noteworthy to spotlight that our department under the guidance of Prof. Rajiva Wijesinghe and Ms. Parvathi Nagasundaram initiated the process in the late 1990s, by way of extending the valuable opportunity to students, of pursuing an Undergraduate degree in English, despite them not having offered English at the Advanced Level examination: the department adopts the concept of an entry test by way of ranging invaluable opportunities to the student community. It is this extension of recognizing academic talent and ensuring their productivity therein, that has led to the current sphere of the department being home to students of diverse academic and socio-cultural backgrounds to pursue the tertiary education of their choice.
The web pages provide basic information about the department: you will also find links to other sites which provide further information.
I do hope that you love and enjoy your time with us and that you find it a rewarding and pleasant experience.