Sri Lanka’s Education Ministry has decided not to extend school hours during the 2026 academic year, citing disruptions caused by recent disaster conditions and damage to school and transport systems in several provinces.
The ministry said school hours for Grades 5 to 13 will remain unchanged from 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. until the education and transport systems return to normal.
Government schools, government-approved private schools and pirivenas are scheduled to begin the first term of 2026 on Jan. 5.
Under the revised academic structure, students from Grades 6 to 13 will have seven periods per day, with each period lasting 45 minutes.
Education reforms will be implemented for Grade 1 and Grade 6 in 2026. Formal academic activities for Grade 6 are set to begin on Jan. 21, while the student identification process for Grade 1 will start on Jan. 5. Formal classroom instruction for Grade 1 will commence on Jan. 29.
The ministry said activity books for Grade 1 and learning modules for Grade 6 will be distributed to students before academic activities begin. Textbooks for all other grades have already been fully distributed.
Meanwhile, the remaining sessions of the 2025 G.C.E. Advanced Level examination are scheduled to be held from Jan. 12 to Jan. 20, 2026. (Newswire)
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