PARLIAMENT | The continuous improvement in the performance of the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination served as proof of the effectiveness of school-based assessment, said Deputy Education Minister Wong Kah Woh today.
Wong was responding to Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (Harapan–Bandar Tun Razak) in Dewan Rakyat on the effectiveness of the assessment in shaping students’ character development and prospects.
The school-based assessment replaced the previous exam-oriented system, such as Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) and the Pentaksiran Tingkatan Tiga (PT3).
Wong said the achievements of post-PT3 student cohorts show that the new assessment system can support academic excellence without centralised examinations at the primary and lower secondary levels.
“The National Average Grade for SPM recorded consistent improvement from 4.74 in 2022 to 4.60 (2023) and 4.49 (2024).
“At the same time, the percentage of candidates eligible to receive certificates also increased from 91.6 percent (2022) to 93.5 percent (2023) and 94.0 percent (2024),” he said during the minister’s question time in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Under the National Education Blueprint 2026-2035, a new Year Four primary assessment has been introduced to better identify students' weaknesses in reading, writing, and arithmetic at an earlier stage.
At the secondary school level, Form 3 students will be evaluated on Bahasa Malaysia, English, Mathematics, Science, and History, starting in 2027.
Early intervention efforts
Elaborating, Wong said school-based assessment has been strengthened through four main components: classroom assessment, physical activities, sports and co-curricular assessment, psychometric assessment, and central assessment.
“School-based assessment is implemented continuously throughout the teaching and learning process to evaluate students’ development, abilities, and level of mastery of curriculum standards.
“In terms of character development, data for the 2024/2025 session shows student participation in co-curricular activities increased to 99.81 percent, compared with 84.45 percent in the previous session,” he said.
According to Wong, to strengthen early intervention efforts, the Education Ministry will introduce learning metrics for Year Four pupils starting this October, followed by Form Three students next year.
The assessment aims to detect levels of literacy, numeracy, and scientific skills mastery to enable earlier intervention, particularly when students are in Years Five and Six.
Wong also reaffirmed that schooling is now compulsory up to Form Five as part of efforts to address student dropouts.
Workload and standardisation
Addressing concerns regarding teachers’ recording workload and standardisation, the ministry said the Integrated Assessment Management System is used to ensure records are submitted online in accordance with standards set by the Examinations Syndicate.
He added that teachers’ well-being is also being prioritised, with the ministry ready to receive complaints and feedback to improve the implementation of school-based assessment.
“This was conveyed through the Education Ministry’s Professional Circular Letter No 3 of 2023 on strengthening the school-based assessment beginning from the 2022/2023 academic session.
“Through this system, data recording for classroom assessment, physical activities, sports and co-curricular assessment, psychometric assessment, and other assessments is conducted online via a single integrated platform.
“The system enables educators to refer to established standards and carry out recording in an orderly and consistent manner nationwide.”
Test specification table
On achievement indicators and key performance indicators, Wong stressed that confidence must be placed in teachers’ professionalism and integrity to conduct assessments transparently and accountably.
Touching on the quality of the Academic Session Final Test, the ministry explained that item construction and assessment recording are guided by the test specification table set by the Examinations Syndicate.
“All these processes are subject to established standards and quality control measures,” he said.
At the same time, he said the ministry takes teachers’ well-being issues seriously.
“Among the measures taken is the abolition of certain data-entry requirements in previous systems to reduce workload.
“The ministry also remains open to receiving complaints and feedback from educators to improve implementation and strengthen the national education ecosystem,” Wong added. - Mkini
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