PETALING JAYA: Following pressure from various quarters, the Education Ministry has decided to make khat (Malay-Arabic calligraphy) optional, instead of compulsory as had been previously decided. In a statement today, the ministry said teachers would also be given the authority to decide on the method of the implementation of the art of khat in their respective classrooms. The decision was made after the matter was brought up for discussion at the Cabinet meeting yesterday. The ministry also announced that the topic on khat would only be allocated three pages in the Bahasa Melayu textbook, down from six as was previously decided. “The Cabinet has also unanimously agreed that khat calligraphy will not be tested in any tests or examinations,” it said. … [Read more...] about Education Ministry decides to make khat optional, not compulsory
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Education Ministry denies making amendments in history textbooks
PUTRAJAYA: The Education Ministry (MOE) denied making amendments or conducting a review of the Form Three History curriculum and textbooks to omit some chapters relating to the Japanese occupation and the threat of the Malayan Communist Party and the Malayan Emergency of 1948. MOE in a statement said the revision of the history of the subject curriculum was last implemented in 2017 in phases. The ministry said the 2017 revision started back in 2012 involving history experts, university lecturers, history subject teachers and curriculum officers from the Panel of History Curriculum Experts and History textbooks. According to the ministry, the first cohort studying the subjects of History and using the textbook with the latest revision history was the Form One students in 2017, who will be Form Four students next year. “None of the sections was removed, omitted or abolished, but the section has been compiled and restructured so that the curriculum learned by students is more neat … [Read more...] about Education Ministry denies making amendments in history textbooks
Education Ministry efficiency ‘hurt by its size’
THE EDUCATION Ministry is far too big and has governance problems, the Independent Committee for Education Reform (ICER) pointed out yesterday. “The ministry hires 400,000 to 500,000 people. This is a very big workforce. We hope the ministry will take into account the fact that the number of students will be falling over time,” ICER member Chaiyuth Punyasavatsut said yesterday. The number of students will naturally drop in the face of the falling birth rate, and it is widely known that several private schools have gone out of business in recent years. Chaiyuth also pointed out that there are governance problems at the ministry, saying he had heard complaints about the transfer of teachers and education officials. Over and above this, he said, the ministry has centralised its power far too much even though the budget, power and responsibility should be decentralised. “Assigning provincial agencies to be major players in educational … [Read more...] about Education Ministry efficiency ‘hurt by its size’
Education Ministry to propose new Higher Education Act
KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of Education is planning to have a new Higher Education Act enacted to eliminate barriers to free speech in universities, said deputy minister Teo Nie Ching. She said the new act would consolidate acts related to higher education namely the Universities and University Colleges Act 1971, the Private Higher Educational Institutions Act 1996, the Educational Institutions (Discipline) Act 1976 and other relevant acts. “Currently the ministry is collecting feedback from stakeholders of educational institutions. “Come June we will develop the framework and subsequently the preliminary draft would be submitted to the Cabinet. “From July to October, we will hold a town hall session for public engagement, and we hope to have the new Bill tabled in Parliament in 2020 after obtaining the approval of the Attorney-General’s Chambers and the Cabinet,“ she said during the question-and-answer session at the Dewan Negara today. Teo was replying … [Read more...] about Education Ministry to propose new Higher Education Act
JKD submits report to Education Ministry
PUTRAJAYA: The National Education Policy Review Committee (JKD) submitted its report to Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik yesterday. The Education Ministry, in a statement, said that it would review the JKD report thoroughly before presenting it to the Cabinet. JKD was established through the proposal of the Cabinet meeting requesting the Education Ministry to set up a special committee to review the national education policies as well as to improve the curriculum and educational system from preschool to university level by incorporating civic and ethical education. Thirteen members of JKD were appointed on Oct 18 last year and they were given until April 30 to prepare a full report. JKD has held a series of meeting with some 3,141 stakeholders to obtain the feedback and suggestions to improve the country’s education system, the statement said. The ministry, on behalf of the government, also expressed its appreciation to JKD chairman Professor Emeritus Datuk Dr Ibrahim Ahmad … [Read more...] about JKD submits report to Education Ministry