New primary school curriculum

A new curriculum will be introduced at the primary school level in 2010 to make it more holistic and less examination-oriented.

Education Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said this would replace the existing primary school integrated curriculum (KBSR), which was first introduced in 1983 and subsequently reviewed in 2000.

“The new curriculum will be based on six key areas to produce holistic individuals,” he told reporters after releasing the third report card based on the National Education Blueprint 2006-2010.

These six areas, he added, were communication, spiritual attitude and values, humanitarianism, science and technology literacy, physical and aesthetics, and personal development.

Hishammuddin said the implications of the new curriculum would include changes in the time table, syllabus and curriculum, while teachers will be trained to become more multi-specialised.

The emphasis in Years One and Two, he added, would be on ensuring pupils mastered reading, writing, arithmetic and reasoning skills, scientific and ICT knowledge, and nurturing creativity.

In Years Four, Five and Six, he said the emphasis would be on acquiring more complex skills and knowledge.

Hishammuddin said the ministry was also transforming the national assessment system, moving from a centralised examination to a school-based assessment.

Suggestions, he added, which were being studied include creating a database of students’ development, reducing the number of examination papers and subjects, and assessing based on semesters.

He said the main of the transformation was to make learning fun and to move away from an examination-oriented environment.

The ministry, he added, was also transforming technical and vocational education to make it more relevant and attractive to students.