KUALA LUMPUR: Access to proper and quality education is vital in breaking the poverty cycle, which is key to transforming the lives of families and communities.
With the Covid-19 pandemic disrupting teaching and learning (PdP) activities in the last two years, educationists agree that several important measures must be taken to ensure that the education system gets back on track.
Former education director-general Tan Sri Alimuddin Mohd Dom praised the Education Ministry for making sure that PdP continued despite school closures throughout the country.
"Yes, there were disruptions in terms of PdP during the pandemic, but students continued learning and teachers continued to teach through the various methods, including online, through social media and television.
"And I believe now that the situation has improved, many of the plans in our education system will continue to be implemented, with a special focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects and higher order thinking skills.
"I'm glad to see that a student-centred approach is also being used, and this I think is the approach that should be emphasised in our education system today," he told the New Straits Times yesterday .
Alimuddin also lauded Barisan Nasional's plans to provide free tertiary education for students from the B40 families.
"This is a great idea to help lift B40 families out of poverty. However, perhaps students who come from the T20 group could pay higher fees to help bear the cost of providing free tertiary education to the less fortunate," he said.
During the coalition's 'Pelancaran Pelan Amal dan Usaha' (Padu) manifesto launch on Monday, BN president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had pledged to provide free early education and daycare, and also for B40 students to receive free higher education.
He had said that this was part of the coalition's serious efforts to eradicate poverty strategically and fairly, adding that this was a long-term initiative.
He also announced that public universities and other public higher education institutions nationwide would offer a flexible studying system, where half of the students would study on campus and others would attend online classes or through distance learning, which he said would help cut the cost of studying by half.
Another educationist Dr Anuar Ahmad of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia said the next education minister must look into problems surrounding learning loss and dropouts, particularly among pupils in Years One to Three.
"Problems regarding learning loss and dropouts must be tackled quickly and from the very beginning. This is one of the most basic things that the Education Ministry and teachers must look into.
"Issues such as not being able to read, write and count will affect the child's ability to effectively learn.
"(To address this) it needs a monitoring system, and comprehensive testing to make sure that no child is left behind," he said.
He said apart from having a good, strong personality leading the Education Ministry, Anuar added that teachers must be given the actual opportunity and space to properly teach.
This could be done by removing other non-teaching tasks given to them such as clerical work, and other affairs outside the classroom such as managing the canteen.
"If we can reduce this burden that teachers have, then we can get education back on track and get the quality education that we need. Students will get the full attention of teachers and teachers can give their full attention to teaching."
He also agreed that providing access to free, quality education was one way of getting families and communities out of poverty, but added that it was important to ensure that the students who were at the receiving end knew of their responsibilities.
"We can (provide free education for B40 students), but students must know that they have a responsibility and that they need to fulfil this obligation with excellence.
"In my opinion, it would be better for the government to provide all students with scholarships, but those who do not complete their education or do not perform well in university would have their scholarships converted into loans, and they would have to pay them back.
"This would then motivate students to focus on their studies," he said.
Earlier this year, the Higher Education Ministry had introduced the Siswa Sulung Keluarga Malaysia Development Programme, which focused on helping the eldest child in B40 households to pursue higher education.
Caretaker Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob had said that this was a unique programme as the selected students would not only be given special access for admission to public universities, but would also be offered scholarships, hostel facilities and mentoring until they secure a job.
Education remains a main focus of the country. The Education Ministry was one of the top three recipients of the 2023 Budget, with an allocation of RM55.6 billion for next year.