Attendance at schools at 85% amid Covid-19 pandemic, says Education Minister

 

PETALING JAYA: Student attendance rate in schools stands at 85% on average amid the Covid-19 pandemic, says Dr Mohd Radzi Md Jidin.

Despite the closure of hundreds of schools under the conditional movement control order (MCO), the Education Minister said the 85% attendance rate had remained stable since schools reopened in July.

“Attendance rate in schools has stood at 85% since July. However, the latest data from Oct 14 showed that attendance currently remains at 85%, even after excluding all the schools in Selangor, Sabah, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya which are under the conditional MCO.

“In certain states such as Kelantan, the attendance rate of students is 90.43% as of Oct 14. In Sarawak, the attendance rate is 89.3%, ” he said during an interview on TV3’s Soal Rakyat programme Saturday (Oct 17).

He added that the high attendance rate of students overall demonstrated parents’ trust in the ministry and the standard operating procedures (SOPs) to ensure their children's safety.

“The students’ safety has always been the ministry's number one priority. There is no argument about that. All our decisions are in the best interests of the students and teachers.

“We do not make baseless decisions, everything we do is based on information, data, analysis and advice from the authorities.”

Mohd Radzi said he was pleased that parents had been diligent in following the SOPs and ensuring their children did the same.

“Parents have been extending their support to teachers and schools to the best that they can, in terms of carrying out the SOPs well.

“We don’t deny that our schools — over 10,000 scattered across the country — have not been perfect in following the stipulated SOPs.

“However, I must say that most schools followed the SOPs sufficiently well, and I'm thankful that it has enabled the children to be protected (from Covid-19), ” he said.

He also said there had been improvements made regarding the teaching and learning process, especially for TV education such as TV Okey.

“The learning material for TV education has been enhanced so that students who do not have the luxury of owning their own electronic devices such as computers, laptops, tablets or phones can tune in.

"Meanwhile, other students who have sufficient gadgets can continue with their lessons online," he said. - Star