KUALA LUMPUR: The Education Ministry will not reverse its decision on the Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) and Pentaksiran Tingkatan Tiga (PT3), which were abolished in 2021 and 2022 respectively.
Its minister Fadhlina Sidek said centralised examinations were no longer relevant, particularly in guiding the National Education Philosophy.
"I would like to take this opportunity to reaffirm that we will not go back on our decision to abolish UPSR and PT3 because they are no longer relevant.
"Instead, we are allowing the school-based assessment (PBS) to function effectively... Whatever happens in education must align with the National Education Philosophy," she said during the ministry's winding-up session at the Dewan Rakyat today.
Several members of Parliament, including Isnaraissah Munirah Majilis@Fakharudy (Warisan-Kota Belud) and Dr. Mohammed Taufiq Johari (PH-Sungai Petani), intervened during the session, calling for the ministry to reinstate the two exams.
Fadhlina said the ministry is confident that PBS covering intellectual, emotional, social, and physical aspects, is the best way to optimise students' potential comprehensively and integratively, as envisioned in the National Education Philosophy.
"PBS is designed to assess the holistic development of students, focusing on learning rather than grades or exam marks. The emphasis is on meaningful learning in an enjoyable environment.
"The ministry has made comparisons with several countries such as Finland, the US, Germany, Canada, Australia, Norway, New Zealand, Japan, Hong Kong, and Indonesia, all of which have transitioned from centralised exams to assessment-based systems.
"International and regional comparisons of educational assessments show that Malaysia's assessment system is in line with global education agendas.
"The implementation of PBS is also consistent with the Incheon Declaration," she said.
She added that to further strengthen PBS, the ministry has also introduced the end-of-academic-session examination, which serves as a summative assessment component.
"This exam is low-stakes, helping to reduce exam pressure on students.
"The ministry is also making improvements to the end-of-academic-session exam for the 2024/2025 academic session, including changing the reporting format to reflect mastery levels in percentage and grades, as well as providing schools and teachers with autonomy in conducting the exam.
"These changes aim to improve the process and make it more parent-friendly, allowing parents to better understand how their children are assessed not just in terms of mastery levels, but also through percentages and grades," she said.