Military Academy’s ‘Smart Class’ to Teach French for Army Personnel

The Sri Lanka Military Academy (SLMA) has further broadened its horizons of academia by applying the technically sound state-of-the-art teaching concept, ‘Smart Class’ to the SLMA for language teaching on the directions of the Commander of the Army, Lieutenant General Crishanthe De Silva.

Inclusion of a new French language course in the curriculum for trainee Officer Cadets and selected UN-bound soldiers in the SLMA curriculum would immensely benefit both officers and soldiers alike since the Army is expected to deploy more contingents in UN missions in the near future in Mali and the African continent where French is spoken.

The new initiative, based on the state-of-the-art teaching facility, now widely accepted as the ‘Smart Class’ consists of sixty contact hours and began recently. It would initially educate the final and penultimate semester Officer Cadets.

Meanwhile, Sri Lankan Army contingents formed for UN missions where French is used as an official language would also be given the opportunity to use the SLMA ‘Smart Class’ Language Laboratory, enabling them to perform their role and tasks in a more effective and efficient manner.

Accordingly, the next designated UN contingent to Mali in the African Continent had also been invited to undergo this intensive French language course beginning 16 January 2017 at the SLMA. The sixty-hour course focuses largely on listening, speaking, reading, writing and conversational French, considering the importance of linguistic and cultural backgrounds of those countries while being deployed in UN missions.

Under the guidance of the Commander of the Army, Directorate of Army Training, headed by Brigadier Vijitha Ravipriya in close coordination with the SLMA Commandant and instructors has introduced the new initiative.