Established in 2016, the Dhammika and Priscilla Perera Foundation is a highly respected charitable organization in Sri Lanka, committed to making a transformative impact in the fields of education and healthcare. Our mission is to provide free, world-class resources to all Sri Lankans, ensuring equitable access regardless of background or socio-economic status.
As part of this mission, we launched DP Education, an innovative e-learning platform offering a broad range of educational opportunities. These include preschool, primary, and secondary education, vocational programs, language studies, information technology, Buddhist studies, health education, and lifelong learning.
DP Education provides free and open digital content across more than 75 subjects. It allows individuals from diverse backgrounds to access education through YouTube, the DP Education website, and our mobile app. This approach ensures that everyone, regardless of their location or resources, can benefit from DP Education’s rich educational offerings.
Vision - "To be the driving force of Sri Lanka's educational transformation, empowering individuals to unlock their full potential and drive the nation’s progress toward a thriving, knowledge-based economy with global competitiveness."
Mission – "To deliver accessible, high-quality education that equips individuals with the critical skills and knowledge necessary for personal growth and national development. We are committed to fostering innovation, encouraging lifelong learning, and building a robust educational foundation that supports Sri Lanka's journey toward a knowledge-based economy and strengthens its position on the global stage."
Our Goals
The traditional education system had long struggled to reach all students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds. We recognized that language barriers, low digital literacy, and financial constraints were key factors preventing many students from receiving the education they deserved, particularly during times of instability such as the COVID-19 pandemic and political unrest.
To overcome these challenges, we developed a multilingual digital platform that offers free educational content in Sinhala, Tamil, and English. This inclusive approach ensured that learners from all linguistic backgrounds could benefit from high-quality educational resources. The platform covered a broad range of subjects, from early childhood education to more advanced levels, and even vocational training, catering to the diverse educational needs of the population.
In order to make the platform as accessible as possible, we leveraged YouTube, allowing students to access educational content for less than a dollar on internet packages. This affordability was crucial for reaching students from economically disadvantaged communities. However, during the implementation phase, we faced significant challenges that required quick adaptation and problem-solving.
One of the major obstacles was the lack of access to technology in rural areas. Many students did not have the necessary devices or stable internet connections to access the digital learning resources. To address this issue, we developed offline learning materials, which allowed students to download content and access it later without needing a continuous internet connection. This solution ensured that even those with limited connectivity could continue their studies uninterrupted. Furthermore, we enabled our DP Education App to be downloaded by any smartphone with a version of Andriod 4 and above.
A significant milestone for DP Education was the establishment of 140 IT Centers across Sri Lanka within 16 months. Despite being a team of fewer than 50 people, we successfully expanded access to IT education, tools and infrastructure for underserved communities, providing the necessary technology and infrastructure for students to thrive in the digital age.
Today, the DP Education IT Campus continues to be a cornerstone in Sri Lanka’s journey toward digital literacy and inclusive education, offering learners a space not only to develop essential IT skills but also to access a broad array of educational resources. This initiative remains a powerful force in ensuring that no learner is left behind in the country's pursuit of progress.
Another challenge we faced was low digital literacy among both students and teachers. Many educators were unfamiliar with online teaching methods, so we introduced training programs to help them adapt to the new format. At the same time, we created a user-friendly platform that allowed students to easily navigate lessons, regardless of their prior experience with digital tools.
In the early stages of the project, we experimented with two teaching methods to find the most effective approach for Sri Lankan learners. The first method, which involved only the teacher’s voice and visual content, did not engage students as well as we had hoped. The second method, where teachers were visible on-screen and used digital boards for interactive content, was much more successful and continues to be the standard today.
Parental resistance to the use of digital devices for learning also posed a challenge. Many parents were concerned about their children’s screen time and the potential for misuse of mobile devices. To alleviate these concerns, we held online seminars, conducted one-on-one sessions, and participated in exhibitions to educate parents on the benefits of digital learning. We also provided guidance on free parental control apps to ensure responsible use of devices, making parents more comfortable with the idea of online learning.
Ensuring that our content remained up-to-date and globally recognized was another important focus for us. Our research team worked closely with university academics and industry professionals to continuously review and update our curricula. This collaboration ensured that learners received not only academic knowledge but were also industry-ready upon completion of their courses.
DP Education was established in Sri Lanka prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, and its impact became even more critical as the pandemic unfolded. With schools closed for nearly two years beginning in March 2020, around 4.2 million students were left without immediate access to formal education, resulting in a staggering loss of 10 billion learning hours. This educational crisis was further exacerbated by fuel shortages and teacher strikes, making the situation even more dire. Through our multilingual digital platform, DP Education allowed students to revisit missed content, making it possible to recover from the learning loss caused by the pandemic. The platform’s wide accessibility played a crucial role in bridging the gap for students who were at risk of falling behind due to the prolonged closure of schools.
Overall Impact Summary :
Impact and Future Goals
