Learn from Cambodia in Pisa scores, academic tells govt

 

An education ministry official previously cited the Covid-19 pandemic as among the factors that contributed to the decline in students’ performance.

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia should take a leaf out of Cambodia’s book when it comes to improving education standards, says an academic.

Malaysia saw a significant drop in last year’s international student assessment (Pisa) scores, with education minister Fadhlina Sidek citing the Covid-19 pandemic as among the factors that contributed to the decline in students’ performance.

The Pisa study serves to gauge the readiness of 15-year-olds who receive formal education to seamlessly adapt to contemporary society. The assessment took place from April 17 to May 31, 2022 at 199 schools, including private schools.

Anuar Ahmad of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) pointed out that Cambodia’s 2022 Pisa’s scores improved while Malaysia’s declined, despite having had longer school closures due to the pandemic and an inferior Internet and technology infrastructure to support online learning.

“It is a situation that may be interesting for us to examine in depth. How did Cambodia successfully manage their education system despite facing (the same obstacles due to) Covid-19,” he said.

“It is a country that still lacks strong financial stability, is still in the process of development, and a nation without high income levels.

“(However), they have managed to improve their educational performance compared with 2018.”

According to the 2022 Pisa score chart, 15-year-old Cambodian students scored 336 in mathematics (up from 324 in 2018), 329 in reading (up from 321 previously) and 347 in science (up from 330 in 2018).

Meanwhile, the latest Pisa scores show that Malaysian 15-year-olds scored 409 in math (down from 440 previously) and 416 in science (down from 438 in 2018). In reading, Malaysians scored 388, down from 415.

Only 1.2% of the students were excellent at math, and only 0.5% were good at science. Less than half, or just 42%, were good at reading.

Previously, education deputy director-general (school operations) Azman Adnan said Malaysia was not the only country suffering a drop in the Pisa score as many others had also been affected by the “learning loss” due to the pandemic.

However, DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng disagreed with Azman and told the ministry to confront the reality of poor education standards rather than downplaying it.

Parent Action Group for Education (PAGE) chairman Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim said the drop in the Pisa ranking was alarming for the country’s education as Covid-19 had deepened the learning crisis.

She also pointed out that a LeapEd Services and Monash University study showed that one in three students feel they are not learning anything new and two in three felt unsupported in their learning.

Noor Azimah called for an increase in the use of digital technology in education in order to bridge the learning loss due to Covid-19 in the shortest possible time by providing devices to those most in need.

“Covid-19 accelerated the use of digital tools in education. Thus, the challenge now is to strengthen and develop these new skills, in a sustainable way,” she said. - FMT