Govt to review school hours, mulls mandatory preschool

By Amar Shah Mohsen

KUALA LUMPUR, July 31 — The government is considering making preschool compulsory for children aged five and above to enhance the country’s education system.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, when tabling the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP), said Putrajaya is also considering a review of school hours, following calls from several quarters to start classes later than the current 7.30am.

“To enhance education outcomes, the government is moving towards making preschool compulsory starting at the age of five,” he told the Dewan Rakyat here today.

“More preschool facilities will be provided at schools under the Education Ministry, especially in rural areas … and the government will conduct a review of optimal school hours, assess the effectiveness of specialised schools, and improve the education model for gifted and talented students.”

Anwar said that throughout the 13MP period, the government will allocate RM67 billion to enhance the education system, including to build and repair schools.

Additionally, as a condition in planning permissions, large-scale housing projects must include schools.

“The development of vertical schools will be expanded to address the issue of student overcrowding and the lack of suitable school sites.”

Anwar, who is also finance minister, said briefly that “the government will implement a pilot project to grant autonomy to selected public universities in order to strengthen the governance of higher education institutions”.

Today, many Malaysian public universities have been granted autonomous status, although the degree of autonomy and its implementation vary.

Separately, Anwar said the government has no plans to abolish the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia, and that the exam would continue to be an evaluation of the effectiveness of education policies, curriculum, and pedagogical approaches.

The government also remains committed to achieving a 98 per cent student enrolment rate in both preschool and secondary school.

Anwar said that to ensure a more streamlined system, the Education Ministry will be responsible for regulating education from preschool to the secondary level, while the Higher Education Ministry will oversee pre-university and higher learning.