The Effect of Knowledge Acquisition on Academic Development: A Comparative Study of English Medium and Sinhala Medium GCE (A/L) Arts Students in the Uva Province, Sri Lanka

Abstract

This study examines the impact of knowledge acquisition on the academic growth of GCE (A/L) arts students in Sri Lanka, comparing English-medium and Sinhala-medium students in the Badulla Educational Zone of Uva Province. A quantitative approach was employed, utilizing structured questionnaires to collect primary data from 204 students (102 English-medium and 102 Sinhala-medium) through a multi-stage sampling method. The data was analyzed with Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to examine how individual, instructional, and contextual factors influenced academic development. The results indicate that all three factors have a positive impact on the academic progress of both groups. However, instructional and individual factors have a more substantial influence on English-medium students, while contextual factors are more significant for Sinhala-medium students. The study also revealed that English-medium students achieve higher academic success than Sinhala-medium students, likely due to differences in teaching methods, resource availability, and language skills. These insights provide valuable guidance for educators and policymakers to develop targeted instructionalstrategies that improve student outcomes in both modes of instruction.