The second phase of the third school term for this year will commence today (16) for all government and government-approved private schools and Pirivenas.
Although the second phase of the third school term was initially scheduled to begin on December 8, the Ministry of Education postponed the reopening of schools due to the disaster situation caused by Cyclone Ditwah.
Accordingly, the second phase of the third school term, which begins today, will continue until December 22, followed by the Christmas holidays from December 23 to December 28.
Schools will reopen for the third phase of the third term on December 29 and will continue until December 31, after which academic activities for the third term will conclude.
School holidays are scheduled from January 10 to January 20 to facilitate examinations for the remaining subjects of the 2025 G.C.E. Advanced Level (A/L) examination.
The second phase of the first school term in 2026 will be held from January 21 to February 13. School holidays will then be granted from February 14 to March 2 for the G.C.E. Ordinary Level (O/L) examination.
However, the Ministry of Education stated that 640 schools in three provinces will not reopen today.
Secretary to the Ministry of Education, Nalaka Kaluwewa, said that schools in the Uva, Central, and North Western provinces will remain closed.
Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) announced that free transport facilities will be provided for schoolchildren in disaster-affected areas during the remainder of this year.
SLTB Chairman Sanjeewa Nandana Kanakaratne stated that special bus services have been arranged for schoolchildren in the affected areas.
In addition, the Railway Department has decided to operate several additional trains to facilitate the travel of schoolchildren during the upcoming days of the third school term, which begins today.
These additional train services will operate on the Main Line, Coastal Line, Puttalam Line, and Kelani Valley Line.
The Railway Department further stated that arrangements have been made to allow schoolchildren to travel by train during the month of December using their November school season tickets.
