curriculum development and historical reforms in education system of malaysia

An education system that has national characteristics and expresses public aspirations:

Generally, the education system of any country is developed according to the wishes of the people. Yes, of course, the usurpers also try to impose their educational system on the conquered areas, but they have to face resistance in this regard. Malaysia is a country where the Portuguese, Dutch and British tried to establish their dominance but the people of Malaysia did not let their identity disappear, let's take a detailed look at it.

Curriculum Development in Malaysia:

 

1- Introduction:

Malaysia is a country consisting of 2 main geographical regions. One of them is Peninsular Malaysia which is consisted of Malaya Peninsula in South Island of Isthmus of Kra. It is also called West Malaysia, while the other part is East Malaysia, including Sabah and Sarawak States. It consists of the south-eastern regions of Borneo Island. The two parts of Malaysia are separated from each other and the South China Sea flows between them for 644 km. The total land area of Malaysia is 3 lac 36 thousand 700 square kilometres. In which Peninsular Malaysia is 1 lac 34 thousand 680 square kilometres and East Malaysia is 2 lac 2 thousand 20 square kilometres.

 

Due to the occupation of the Portuguese in 1511 and the Dutch in 1642, western influences could be seen here. While British rule was established because of trading colonies in Penang in 1786, Singapore in 1819 and Malacca in 1824. In 1955, Malaya formed its own government while gaining full independence in 1957 by adopting a system of constitutional monarchy with elected government, in 1963 a federation consisting of Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak was formed. A large number of Chinese arrived here due to the promotion of tin industry, while Indians moved here due to the rubber industry. For this reason, there are 3 major ethnic groups in Malaysia, which include Malaysians, Chinese and Indians. In 1980, the population of Malaysia was 1.43 million which was growing at 2.8% annually. Most of the population here is engaged in agriculture.

Malaysia is now an elected constitutional monarchy, the federal government is responsible for foreign affairs, defence, internal security, judiciary, federal citizenship, finance, industry, communication, education and other related sectors having full authority.

2- Educational system and curriculum:

Traditional education in Malaysia starts at the age of 6 in primary school. Here primary, secondary (at lower and upper) and post-secondary stem is prevalent which consists of 2+2+2+3+6 years.

At the primary level, education is taught in three languages, namely Malay, Chinese and Tamil. English is taught as a compulsory secondary language in every school and at every level of education. At primary and lower secondary level, promotion for next class is without any exams.

In 1980, 2 million 6 thousand 748 children were studying in primary schools. This figure is about 93% of the total children aged 6 to 11 years. It was expected that 90 percent of them would reach the lower secondary class one (form one). Regardless of the source of education, the Syllabus is common in all primary schools so that all the children of the country can study a course with the same perspective on Malaysia. Each school evaluates its own students and tests are conducted regularly whether weekly, monthly or yearly. In addition to these, every year the students of the fifth grade also have a National Assessment. This national examination (Centralized Assessments) examines the level of achievement of the student and determines the therapeutic activities before entering the secondary school.

At Lower Secondary Level (Classes 1 to 3), students do not need to clear any test to advance to the next class. And for three years, their promotion to the next grade is automatic. Thus, a student's schooling covers at least 9 years. Children from Chinese and Tamil medium schools have to spend an additional year in the "Remove Class" for entry into the secondary school class day. In this class the students are expected to acquire the necessary skills in Malaysian language.

At the lower secondary level, education of a very comprehensive nature is imparted. In addition to academic subjects, it also includes professional agricultural education. In this the subject of home sciences, industrial arts, agriculture sciences and commercial studies are presented. It is necessary for each student to choose one of these subjects. The basic purpose of this is to give an awareness about the practical arts. After the completion of class 3 the students appear in the examination of lower certificate of education. Based on the results of this examination, the students are selected for upper secondary education and they are sent to different fields like Arts, Science Technical and Vocational etc.

At the upper secondary level (classes (4-5) arts or science education or technical and vocational training is given. At the end of the 2nd year, students participate in the Malaysian Certificate of Education or the sijil Pelajaran Malaysian exam. The former examination is in English and the latter is in Malaysian language. Whereas the students getting vocational education appear in Malaysian Vocational Certificate of Education. Based on the results of these exams, students get jobs in the government and private sector. Also, based on the same results, they get admissions for post-secondary education.

Pre University level i.e. form 6 , lower and upper level education is based on both the arts and science fields the field a student has to study depends on the success obtained in the examination. At the end of 2nd year education the students appear in higher school certificate or Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan , the first one is in English while the second one is in Malaysian language. Admission to national and international universities based on this examination. Jobs are also provided in some fields on the base of this certificate in government and private sector. Institutions responsible for out-of-school training include Board of National Unity of Prime Ministers Department, Agricultural and Community Development Division, Veterinary and Fisheries Department and Manpower Department etc.

 

Most of the technical skills are taught in the programs offered by these institutes, while education department officers and teachers are also involved in these programs to establish a link with the education department. These officers and teachers provide assistance in curriculum development and training programs in specific areas. Malay and Rural Development Agency and Ministry of Agriculture Development Department have started special programs for rural youth.

Prior to January 1973, curriculum development was coordinated through the Curriculum Section of the Education Bureau and Research Division. Curriculum development was primarily about subject matter, including subject syllabus, preparation of teacher guides, Teacher Training Programmes, Monitoring of Textbooks etc. were included.

The Curriculum Development Center was established in 1973 to improve the quality of education in accordance with public expectations. The Center played a very important role in developing the National Curriculum. It has been regularly reviewing curriculum and develops curriculum models and making the on job teacher aware about the syllabus.

In 1979, a Cabinet Committee report suggested two major measures for the school system.

I - Revision of primary school curriculum focusing on core subjects.

II - General education program for secondary level.

The new primary school curriculum was introduced under a phased program, in 1982, 302 primary schools started the new curriculum in the first standard (1 Standard), in 1983 it was extended to all schools, while in 1988, a new curriculum was introduced in all schools for all grades.