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E-learning platform a boon for students

Almost everyone, especially parents, drew a huge sigh of relief when the haze disappeared.

Their children, however, might have wished that the haze stayed around longer since they could skip school when the air quality reached an unhealthy level.

I could not stop laughing when my colleagues in the administrative capital received texts from their children, asking for Air Pollutant Index (API) readings.

The sudden interest in the API readings was so telling of the children’s anticipation that their schools would be ordered closed by the Education Ministry.

When the education minister said schools with visibility of below 500 metres could be closed, several parents told me that their children had forced them to drive in their housing areas looking for a landmark 500m away.

Once again, I burst out laughing when the parents told me that their children used these landmarks to gauge the day’s visibility.

No doubt, one has to commend the children’s ingenuity. Nonetheless, the number of lesson hours the students missed is worrisome.

In this respect, it makes sense when the ministry collaborated with iTTV Education Sdn Bhd to allow more than four million Year 4 to Form 5 students to access the iTTV FreeSpaceLearning channel on YouTube for free within six months, starting last month.

With an early start in 2009, iTTV Education has produced some 1,000 hours of contents based on the ministry’s school syllabus.

Those in iTTV Education were spot on when they said their product could be a conducive learning tool for students, especially during the haze.

The e-learning platform, which has been implemented in many countries, including South Korea, China and Singapore, should be made available to our students in situations such as the haze to ensure they do not miss lessons.

It is a great option, too, for children who are hospitalised. Should the government implement this programme, this should be considered.

My vote also goes to Putrajaya’s efforts to boost the standard of English via programmes as well as Bahasa Malaysia, with aRM135 million allocated under the 2016 Budget.

This is a noble effort on the government's part, but Putrajaya must brace itself to face obstacles along the way, including resistance from the people.

It will require perseverance from those in the administrative capital to carry out this plan.

No matter how unpopular it will be seen, those in Putrajaya must carry it out as raising students’ proficiency in English will chart Malaysia’s future.

In a recent post-budget briefing with Treasury secretary-general Tan Sri Dr Mohd Irwan Serigar, I wanted to do the happy dance when he announced that the Treasury’s National Strategic Unit would offer free English classes using existing facilities next year.

I agree with his view that it’s crucial for people to master English and such efforts should not be politicised. Acquiring and mastering English will not make us any less Malay, Chinese or Indian. In fact, it can be a tool to unite people of various backgrounds.

The writer is NST’s Putrajaya bureau chief

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