A group representing parents has expressed fears that making children sit for an exam at a young age would put undue pressure on them.
On the other hand, several parents who spoke with FMT have given the new move the thumbs up, pointing out that it helps teachers and parents monitor the children’s progress.
The move comes amid lingering sensitivities in Malaysia’s education debate, following the abolition of two major nationwide exams — the primary school achievement examination (UPSR) in 2021 and the Form Three Assessment (PT3) in 2022 — which marked a shift away from exam-centric schooling.
Education minister Fadhlina Sidek said last week that the new assessments “will be far better” than the UPSR and PT3.
She said those in Year 4 this year will be the first batch to sit for the assessment, scheduled for October, while Form 3 pupils will follow in 2027.
Exams bring structure, motivation
Among the parents who are in favour of the national assessments is Su, mother of a girl who is now in Year 4.
“Exams encourage parents to monitor learning and establish study routine early,” she told FMT.
“Without standardised exams, children study half-heartedly and lack real challenges. We can start organising study time and sourcing books to help children focus from the start of the year,” she added.
Another parent, Man, said his children are ready because they have been exposed to structured learning from an early age.
“My children can handle it. They’ve been taking tuition since they were young, so there’s no added difficulty,” the 38-year-old father of a nine-year-old and an eight-year-old told FMT.
Too much of a rush
Unlike Su and Man, retired teacher Alvin fears that the various parties that will eventually be responsible for implementing the initiative may not be ready to do it at such short notice.
“You announce you want to have it by the end of the year, but is the education department ready? Are all the teachers prepared for it?” The 68-year-old, who has a grandson in Year 3, asked.
Another parent who declined to be named, agreed that schools need time to prepare the facilities while ensuring teacher capacity and pupil readiness.
“It’s too early for pupils to have a big exam in Year 4,” the kindergarten coordinator who has two children in Year 3 and Year 6 told FMT.
Their concerns are shared by education NGO Teach for Malaysia and Melaka Action Group for Parents in Education (Magpie), which represents parents of school-going children.
Need for low stakes, clear purpose
Teach for Malaysia CEO Chan Soon Seng, warned that the national assessments could become a high-stakes exam if the plan is to use them to stream pupils into different classes or schools.
He said it would be better if it were just a measure to identify learning gaps early so teachers could focus on the weak pupils in Years 5 and 6.
“It will be good if it is treated as a mid-point check rather than the last word on a pupil’s educational achievement based on his past performance,” he told FMT. “Exams should be the means to determine the need for intervention or remedial support.”
Mak Chee Kin of Magpie warned against turning the test into a stress-inducing exam and said results should be used to support pupils, not judge them.
He pointed out that core literacy and numeracy are essential at this stage.
“Since the people in power feel that History is of paramount importance, it can be included in a basic, thematic, understanding-oriented way rather than deep memorisation, while focusing on local context,” he said and suggested using shorter papers and more project-based tasks spread across the term.