KUALA LUMPUR: The absentee and failure rates in the 2022 Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination should compel the government to rethink its approach of not having exam-based assessments.
Education expert Dr Anuar Ahmad from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia said the impact of abolishing Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) in 2021 and Pentaksiran Tingkatan Tiga (PT3) last year would be seen in students sitting the SPM from next year.
"I foresee this batch facing difficulties when they take SPM next year.
"The government should investigate and find out the factors that led to more than 70,000 students failing to obtain their SPM certificate, and address this matter."
Anuar said the absence of UPSR and PT3 could also have an adverse impact on students as there was no standard benchmark prior to SPM to gauge their ability to answer examination questions.
He was commenting on the outcome of an assessment by Untuk Malaysia, a movement to rejuvenate the education system, which claimed that 70,445 candidates in the 2022 SPM failed to get certificates, either due to not attending the exams or failing their Bahasa Melayu or History papers.
He suggested a review of the class-based assessment system (PBD) as it was not at a satisfactory level, based on comments from teachers and parents.
He said the Education Ministry must address three factors: the number of students in each classroom, which could affect the system's effectiveness; the packed syllabus; and teachers' autonomy.
Otherwise, students would face difficulties when they sit SPM in the future, he said.
"A classroom should not have more than 25 students to ensure that carry out activities and assessments effectively.
"There is also the packed syllabus, where teachers and students are trying to cover as much as possible, which then results in less time for activities and proper assessment of students, a main component in PBD."
He said teachers' autonomy must be safeguarded to allow them to give proper and just assessment on their students without influence from others.
Educationist Professor Emeritus Datuk Dr Noraini Idris said while she supported PBD and school-based assessment systems (PBS), there was a need to review their implementation.
She suggested that the component of national examinations be incorporated into school education to ensure students were as prepared to sit SPM, the 'final' before leaving school, as they had throughout the teaching-and-learning process prior.
"We don't have a central monitoring body to guide school teachers in carrying out PBD.
"In this matter, all levels — from the ministry to state education departments and district education offices — can work together to observe PBD in more than 10,000 schools nationwide and synchronise its implementation," she told the New Straits Times.
She said UPSR and PT3 should be revived to allow students to familiarise themselves with "standards" before they sit SPM.
Noraini, who is National Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Association president, said a good PBD system, which covers innovative curriculum, and PBS should go hand in hand in nurturing well-rounded students.