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Ministry must regularly report progress on learning gaps initiatives, says expert

KUALA LUMPUR: The Education Ministry must regularly present a "report card" on its four initiatives to address learning gaps, said an education expert.

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Centre of Education and Diversity senior lecturer Dr Anuar Ahmad said the report card should be supported by data and a clear evaluation system.

The move, he said, would help parents, teachers and the public understand the efforts and hard work invested in improving the education system.

"Unfortunately, during this morning's press conference, these efforts were not demonstrated or effectively communicated," he said in a video posted on Facebook.

"What we wanted to hear was whether the teachers, students and parents were happy with the curriculum updating and restructuring, which saw a density reduction of up to 50 per cent.

"It should indicate how much progress has been made and how this alignment adds significant meaning to their pedagogy, and how much improvement should be expected after the restructuring.

"We also want to see if student performance is improving and whether the initiative has been effective.

"Therefore, moving forward, it is essential to support the outcomes of the four initiatives with clear data and facts, as a better understanding will strengthen awareness of what is happening within our national education system."

Anuar praised the ministry for acknowledging weaknesses in the current curriculum and taking steps to improve it.

"The interventions confirmed that our curriculum has issues. It revealed that the problem lies not with the teachers, but with the curriculum."

He said since the introduction of the Standard Primary School Curriculum and School-Based Assessment systems, many teachers had expressed concerns, stating that they were too advanced and unsuitable for students.

"From 2012 to 2023, there has been no response despite calls for a curriculum overhaul. The review in 2017 did not lead to significant changes.

"Despite the ministry's acknowledgment of the problems with the curriculum and subsequent interventions, we know that some teachers who raised concerns faced disciplinary actions, were dismissed or resigned.

"It is disheartening that these teachers, who did what they believed was right, had their careers jeopardised.

"Now that we recognise the problems with the curriculum, these teachers should be brought back into the education system because they were only pointing out the truth."

Earlier today, Education director-general Azman Adnan held a media briefing on curriculum intervention.

Among the achievements he highlighted were the updating and restructuring of the Level 1 syllabus for Science, Mathematics, Bahasa Melayu and English.

He also said 122,062 pupils had been identified for the ministry's Literacy and Numeracy Intervention Programme through early screening conducted by teachers in July.

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