Determinants of Successful Bilingual Secondary Education Implementation in Rural Sri Lanka: Evidence from Anuradhapura District

Abstract

The expansion of English-medium and bilingual education (BE) in postcolonial contexts has intensified debates regarding institutional capacity, equity, and implementation effectiveness, particularly in rural settings. Drawing on institutional theory, this study investigates the regulatory, normative, and cultural-cognitive determinants of the successful implementation of bilingual secondary education in the Anuradhapura District, Sri Lanka. A quantitative survey design was employed to collect data from 200 teachers and school principals across five educational divisions. Using descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis, the study tested nine hypotheses encompassing internal (school climate, leadership, curriculum, teacher-related factors, and access to resources) and external (student-related factors, parental involvement, sociocultural interests, and language policy) determinants. The findings indicate that both institutional-level and contextual variables significantly predict the successful implementation of bilingual education. Teacher-related factors and access to resources emerged as the strongest internal predictors, while parental involvement and sociocultural attitudes demonstrated substantial external influence. The results underscore the interdependence between school-level leadership structures and broader policy and community environments in shaping the sustainability of bilingual programs. By operationalizing institutional theory within a rural South Asian educational context, this study extends existing bilingual education research beyond Western immersion and CLIL models. The findings offer empirically grounded policy implications for equitable expansion of English-medium education in resource-constrained, multilingual societies.