Reducing curriculum density won’t solve all education woes, says expert

 

Education director-general Azman Adnan said a 50% reduction in curriculum density for specific Year 1 Mathematics and Science topics has helped pupils achieve the required learning standards.

PETALING JAYA: 

Merely reducing curriculum density is unlikely to address the core weaknesses plaguing Malaysia’s education system, educationist I Lourdesamy said.

He said quality teachers, effective monitoring of teaching and the right curriculum content would help improve the country’s education system in a holistic manner.

Lourdesamy also said smaller class sizes, continuous student assessments, more teaching resources and greater variety in lesson delivery would boost education standards.

Teachers should also be freed from too much paperwork and allowed to concentrate on teaching. We need competent, creative teachers who have a passion for teaching,

 he said.

Lourdesamy’s comments come after education director-general Azman Adnan said reducing up to 50% of the curriculum density in specific Year 1 Mathematics and Science topics has helped pupils achieve the required learning standards.

Azman said the curriculum’s restructuring, which began in March, has also simplified teaching content for educators. He said the move was to allay concerns raised by parents that the national curriculum was overly challenging for young children, particularly Year 1 pupils.

Better school-life balance

Several parents have expressed support for the revised curriculum for Year 1 pupils, believing that their children should not be burdened with an overly dense curriculum.

Haszliza Samsuri said a lighter curriculum has allowed her daughter to master certain topics before moving on to more advanced lessons.

I also notice that my child has more free time. A denser curriculum would mean less time to learn each topic, which could lead to stress,

 she said.

Another parent, Nur Ainina Abdul Aziz, said the simplified curriculum has led to less homework for her son, which she believes has improved his mental and emotional health.

With the long school hours, it’s good that he can come home and rest without the pressure of too much homework,

 she said.

A parent who wanted to be known only as Ammu said while the reduced curriculum has helped her children understand their lessons better, it could also limit their learning potential.

My twins are less stressed and have more time for extracurricular activities. But I prefer more content with less homework so that they can advance academically,

 she said.

Chee, a business manager whose child is in Year 2, said the curriculum for Year 1 should not be overwhelming, particularly for pupils lacking preschool exposure.

She said this could also alleviate the financial burden for parents as they would not need to send their children to tuition classes to catch up on the school curriculum. - FMT