English Camps: A positive response to a common challenge faced by English teachers in Sri Lankan schools

Abstract

The concept of English camps was introduced to the Sri Lankan education system in 1996 as a response to this common challenge of developing English Language Proficiency (ELP) in students, but its impact has not yet been documented. This study Intends to examine the impact of English camps on developing students' Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) (Cummins, 2002) by analyzing the perceptions of English camp teachers. Results indicated that English camps have a positive impact on developing students' BICS. Further, English camps served to develop students' personality, self-confidence, and leadership so that students used English to overcome their mental barriers. English camps served not only English teachers but also English Medium Instruction (EMI)/ Bilingual Education (BE) teachers as an effective teaching strategy and considered camp training as an effective Continuous Professional Development (CPD). The lack of administrative support, funds, and prior planning were observed as major challenges for conducting English camps. Therefore, this study concludes that English camps have a positive impact on improving students' BICS and recommends English camps for students and teachers for CPD.