SHAH ALAM, Dec 12 — The Ministry of Education will continue its efforts to help students missing out on education due to multidimensional poverty, to bridge the disparity among students while improving their performance in the upcoming Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) report.
Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said several successes have been achieved through her ministry’s initiatives and efforts over the past year, and hoped all stakeholders will stay on the same path to improve the quality of education in the country.
She emphasised that the factors leading to the decline in academic performance include the long closure of schools due to the COVID-19 pandemic and multidimensional poverty, such as the lack of devices, limited internet access and the lack of opportunities for education.
“We have addressed all of these issues and will continue to do so. This includes the introduction of the digital education policy, which we want to improve in the context of the upcoming PISA study,” she said.
Fadhlina was speaking to reporters after witnessing the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Selangor Technical Skills Development Centre (STD) and the Ministry of Education (MOE).
She added that these efforts include literacy and numeracy programmes, which are part of the ministry’s initiatives throughout the year.
Malaysia’s performance in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2022 has dropped in all three literacy measures assessed namely literacy in reading, mathematics and science, compared to the score in 2018.
As for complaints from parents about the extravagant spending associated with graduation parties in hotels, Fadhlina hoped for a dialogue between parents and schools, including through the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA).
“There needs to be a consensual discussion between the parents and the school where the programme is run according to their means,” she said.
