PETALING JAYA: Former minister Rafidah Aziz has called for immediate reforms in the education sector after a recent World Bank report which painted a “worrisome” picture about the country’s education standards.
The report titled “Bending Bamboo Shoots: Strengthening Foundation Skills”, found that Malaysian students spend an average of 12.5 years in school but learn the equivalent of only 8.9 years.
It also said 42% of Malaysian students have failed to achieve reading proficiency by the end of Standard 5, which is higher than other countries with similar gross national income per capita (34%).
In a statement to FMT, Rafidah said failure to address these issues will cause Malaysia to lag “far behind” in crucial aspects such as competitiveness and socioeconomic development.
“Immediate reform is needed in various areas (such as) education policies, structure, system, content and delivery,” she said.
“Today’s children are the workforce of the future. Therefore, they must be equipped with the education, training and skills required by the economic and socioeconomic environment, which is increasingly specific and facing rapid changes.
“The training of teachers and educators is extremely important so there are no gaps, and (lessons) align with current and future needs, as well as the demands of the country’s economic sector.”
She also said the country’s education system must be able to produce a skilled and capable workforce in line with market demands.
Rafidah suggested that the government conduct brainstorming sessions and meetings with experts and stakeholders in the field of education and pedagogy to find ways to address the issues highlighted in the World Bank report, published last Thursday.
The report said by the time a child in Malaysia is 15 years old, it is “far behind” in reading, science and mathematics compared to Malaysia’s aspirational peers, such as Hong Kong, China, Japan and Singapore.
“This child is also performing below his/her peers in Vietnam, which spends a fraction of what Malaysia spends on education,” it said.
Apart from limited access to quality early childhood education, the World Bank noted that teacher preparedness and a lack of robust performance tracking systems were other issues contributing to poor educational outcomes observed in Malaysia.
It proposed expanding access and quality of preschool education, implementing standardised learning assessments, and providing ongoing professional development for teachers based on international best practices.
