15/12/2025

MONDAY | DEC 15, 2025

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Major milestones achieved by Education Ministry BUKIT MERTAJAM: The Education Ministry has recorded several major achievements over the past three years in implementing education reforms, including the enforcement of compulsory secondary school education, reduction of workload of educators and the construction and rehabilitation of schools nationwide. Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said the implementation of these education reforms would be further strengthened, with the ministry focusing next year on preparing teachers for the rollout of the 2027 school curriculum. She said the curriculum would be implemented in stages, beginning at the preschool level in 2026, followed by Year One and Form One in 2027. “The ministry’s ongoing commitment to reducing the workload of teachers would enable educators to focus fully on teaching, including strengthening pedagogical mastery and effectively implementing reforms in the classroom.” She was speaking after the handover ceremony of the Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Agama Sheikh Tahir Jalaluddin project yesterday. Fadhlina said among the ministry’s most significant achievements was the approval of the Education (Amendment) Bill 2025 in Parliament, which made secondary school education compulsory up to Form Five. She said with the amendments, every Malaysian child is now legally protected to remain in the education system until the completion of secondary school, ensuring that there are no dropouts after Year Six. She added that the ministry also succeeded in recruiting 52,948 new teachers, achieving a filling rate of 98%, the highest in almost a decade, ensuring that nearly all classes nationwide are staffed with adequate teaching personnel. Fadhlina also said the ministry is simultaneously implementing 11 safe-school initiatives nationwide, including an allocation of RM5 million for the installation of closed-circuit television cameras, the appointment of 10,096 new teachers and counsellors as well as 600 assistant dormitory wardens. She said the national school calendar would resume its January start, beginning with the 2026 academic session, following four years of disrupted schedules due to the Covid pandemic. She added that the literacy and numeracy intervention programme had also shown positive results, with 398,496 students successfully mastering basic skills of reading, writing and arithmetic, an increase from 326,051 students prior to the implementation of the intervention. Fadhlina said in order to reduce the burden on teachers, the ministry is implementing task reforms that include the appointment of 562 assistant teachers, the placement of 600 assistant wardens under the Malaysia Short Term Employment programme, the provision of operational support in 281 secondary schools and improvements to the daily lesson plan. She said the construction and rehabilitation of educational infrastructure have shown strong progress, with 44 new schools built and 44 dilapidated schools completed this year. Fadhlina said efforts to expand early childhood education have also been strengthened through the ministry’s preschools, thereby increasing access to early education in urban, rural and remote areas. On initiatives to address school dropout rates in remote areas, she said the expansion of K9 and K11 schools had succeeded in achieving a zero dropout rate, with students remaining in school until they complete secondary education.

Training Management System abolished to reduce teacher workload BUKIT MERTAJAM: The Ministry of Education Malaysia Training Management System has been abolished to reduce the workload of teachers, said Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek. She said the decision was made following the ministry’s ongoing assessment of the workload of teachers as well as feedback from educators who felt that the system was affecting their focus on their core duties. including improvements to the student discipline system, to address workload issues. “Every step taken is part of the ministry’s ongoing commitment to reducing their workload,” Fadhlina said after attending the Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Agama Sheikh Tahir Jalaluddin school project handover ceremony yesterday. requirements, which disrupted their focus on teaching in the classroom. Fadhlina said the abolition of the system is intended to give teachers space to focus fully in the classroom, especially ahead of the implementation of the new curriculum and education development plan that would be introduced next year.

She also said the ministry would continue to consider measures to be taken to consistently reduce the workload of teachers. – Bernama

She said the Training Management System was often a topic of discussion among teachers who did not wish to be bound by its

She added that the ministry had implemented various interventions previously,

Ahmad Zahid with Indian Progressive Front president Datuk T. Loganathan at the general assembly yesterday. – BERNAMAPIC No coming back if you leave BN, says coalition chairman

all parties, particularly those forming the Sabah government, on candidate selection, Bernama reported. “As we are part of the Sabah government, it is not impossible for us to engage in discussions not only with Gabungan Rakyat Sabah but also other parties that previously contested in Lamag. “For the Kinabatangan parliamentary seat as well, we will hold discussions. If negotiations can be conducted with all parties, that would be a better approach, especially since there are still up to 24 months remaining in the parliamentary term.” Ahmad Zahid, who is also deputy prime minister, said he has yet to be asked by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to submit names to fill vacancies in the Cabinet. “The prime minister has not asked for any names yet. When the time comes, I will inform him.” Currently, several Cabinet positions are vacant – Economy minister, Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability minister, Entrepreneur and Cooperatives Development minister as well as Investment, Trade and Industry minister. The Election Commission has announced that a special meeting would be held on Dec 16 to determine key dates for both by-elections.

o Zahid stresses importance of honouring Barisan Nasional’s seven-decade history of friendship and loyalty

Ű BY THE SUN TEAM newsdesk@thesundaily.com

Unity government. “Now, after three years of the Unity government, they complain about being sidelined and treated like stepchildren.” At the party’s 79th annual general meeting last month, MIC delegates said they would refer to president Tan Sri S.A. Vigneswaran and the central working committee on whether to remain in BN, which it had helped establish alongside Umno and MCA. Meanwhile, MCA approved a resolution to leave BN if any coalition party were to ally with DAP in the next general election. When asked if MIC had formally submitted any resolution to exit BN, Ahmad Zahid said he had received nothing official. “I have not seen any resolution or letter, and no decision has been made. However, if they cannot make a choice, we will decide for them.” Ahmad Zahid also addressed the upcoming by-elections for the Kinabatangan parliamentary and Lamag state seats following the death of incumbent Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin on Dec 5. He said BN would hold discussions with

PETALING JAYA: Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties have been warned that leaving the coalition is a one-way move, with no chance of returning. BN chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi emphasised that the coalition would not welcome back parties that choose to exit. “Do not regret leaving BN. Once the step is taken, there is no turning back. “Decisions should never be made in anger, frustration or under pressure. Politics is ever-changing, requiring patience and careful judgment,” he said at the Indian Progressive Front general assembly yesterday. Ahmad Zahid stressed the importance of honouring BN’s seven-decade history of friendship and loyalty, cautioning against abandoning it out of dissatisfaction or what he described as mabuk kuasa (obsession with power). He also criticised parties that had previously resisted cooperating with the