Assessment, not exam-based, should be today's way in education, says don
KUCHING (April 26): The government should consider abolishing the examination process in the country and introduce an assessment approach in line with this modern era.
Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia's Faculty of Syariah and Law associate professor Dr Muzaffar Syah Mallow, who made this call, said students today needed to learn many survival skills to compete in this complex and interconnected world, rather than focusing on theoretical and academic excellence.
'They need to master social and communication skills, and learn how to use new and modern technologies, the art of critical thinking and many more.
'All these skills cannot be picked up through theoretical and academic processes in a classroom, nor can they be assessed through the examination process,' he said in a statement yesterday.
The academician also believed that abolishing examinations could reduce the stress level among students, who had been put through a lot of pressure to excel in their studies by scoring As.
He said students who were unable to obtain A would feel that they were not smart enough to survive and succeed in this world.
'With no more examinations in school, the parents would also become more relaxed instead of pushing their children to score high marks.
'This would prevent unnecessary conflicts between the parents and the children – not to mention that parents would no longer need to spend time and energy on comparing the academic achievements among their children.
'The time has come for Malaysians to change their mindset, not to see the examination process as the only way to evaluate an individual.'
Adding on, Muzaffar Syah suggested that the Ministry of Education (MoU) would set up a special committee to look into his proposal.
'This committee should comprise educational experts, particularly those familiar with the country's education system, teachers as well as relevant NGOs (non-governmental organisations).'
He said the ministry could also conduct a survey among students with regard to the proposal.
'The voices of our students must be heard first since they are the ones facing actions and decisions taken by the government,' he added.
In relation to this, Muzaffar Syah was glad that the government decided to abolish Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) in 2021 and Form 3 Assessment (PT3) in 2022.
'The government could do more by abolishing the remaining examinations such as SPM (Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia) or STPM (Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia).
'We can no longer rely on the examination process to assess our students in school. We need to opt for other methods of assessment in order to effectively assess our students.' assessment approach examination lead Muzaffar Syah Mallow
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