The plenary session of the Faculty of Management, Social Sciences, and Humanities at the KDU International Research Conference (IRC) brought together scholars and practitioners from three distinct fields to share insights and research findings. Chaired by Prof. Dinesh Samarasinghe, Dean of the Faculty of Business at the University of Moratuwa, the session covered a diverse range of topics within the fields of management, social sciences and humanities.
One of the standout presentations was delivered by plenary speaker Prof. Anton Piyarathna, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the Open University of Sri Lanka (OUSL). His anthropological study focused on the experiences of the Pānama people living along the Eastern coast of Sri Lanka during incidents of natural disaster. Prof. Piyarathna, who earned his PhD in Anthropology from Macquarie University in Australia in 2014, has a rich academic background that includes an MA in Sociology from the University of Colombo and a B.A. (Special Degree) in Sociology. Moreover, the session was stimulated intellectually by Dr. Zameer Careem- Director of CPA and Dr. Andy Circoki, Associate Professor of English Education at York University who inspired the audience and scholars with their insights on history and languages.
The Management & Finance technical sessions were chaired by Dr. Namali Sirisoma, Mrs. Imendra Wattuhewa and Dr. Wasantha Premarathne from the Department of Management. Fourteen academically enriching research papers were presented in the sessions and the research titled “Assessing the Perceived Logistics and Spatial Feasibility of Establishing an Export Zone in Trincomalee” conducted by S Lakshan, MKN Dulanjalee and MSF Shazika under the supervision of Dr. Sabeen Sharic was awarded best paper in the Management & Finance discipline.
The Social Sciences technical sessions featured a total of ten papers presented in two dedicated sessions on social sciences. Dr. Tamara Jayasundera and Prof. P. Hewage chaired the two sessions, fostering engaging discussions and offering valuable feedback for the presenters. Notably, HMCRK Thilakarathna’s paper on “The Effect of Social Media Usage on Behavioural Changes in Adolescents Admitted to and Attended the Clinics of the District General Hospital, Hambantota” was recognized as the best paper of the session.
The technical sessions of the Department of Languages were divided into two tracks, namely, Teaching English for Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) and Applied Data Science and Communication (ADSC). Accordingly, three sessions were conducted under TESOL where 17 topical research on English language teaching were presented and the sessions were chaired by language experts Dr. MTN Wijetunge, Prof. HDBN Indrarathne, and Dr. Lesley Dick. The award for the best paper was secured by Mr. RATP Rajapaksha for his research titled ‘Teacher Perspectives on Different Englishes Used in Sri Lankan Classrooms’. The two sessions dedicated to ADSC featured 11 papers, and the sessions were chaired by Dr. Samantha Mathara Arachchi and Dr. DGND Jayarathna. BCT Wickramasinghe, WWDP Fernando, WHS Amaya, WBR Munasinghe, and HDBN Indrarathne won the best paper award for their research titled ‘Do Data Science Degrees in Sri Lanka Fulfil the Needs of the Job Market?’
Overall, the plenary and technical sessions of FMSH served as an important platform for both local and international scholars to exchange ideas and present contemporary research in the fields of management, social sciences and humanities underscoring the commitment of KDU IRC to advancing academic discourse and collaboration.
