SHAH ALAM — The national education policy needs a revamp as it currently does not implement exams for Year 6 in primary schools and Form 3 in secondary schools, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
He said this follows the discovery that around 10,177 Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) candidates last year did not sit for the 2023 exam.
Students’ problems with reading, writing, and arithmetic (3M) were also among the issues identified.
These findings were obtained from discussions with Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir and Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek, Zahid said yesterday.
“As a result, the education policy that does not include exams for Year 6 and Form 3, and only has exams in Form 5 must be revamped,” he said in his speech when officiating the 78th MIC General Assembly.
The Primary School Achievement Test (UPSR) for Year 6 students and the Form Three Assessment (PT3) were abolished in 2022 by then Education Minister, Datuk Dr Mohd Radzi Md Jidin, and replaced with the implementation of Classroom Assessment (PBD) and School-Based Assessment (PBS).
UPSR was introduced in 1988 with the fundamental aim of mastering the 4M: reading, writing, arithmetic, and reasoning, while PT3 was implemented in 2014 to replace the Lower Secondary Assessment (PMR).
Zahid added, education policies should remain consistent and not change despite changes in government and leadership to prevent students from becoming test subjects.
“Let the government and leaders change, but the national education policy must be structured so that our children do not become victims,” he said. — September 16, 2024