Paris, Nov 9 – The Malaysian Education Blueprint 2013-2025 is capable of putting Malaysia within the top three countries in term of performance in international education assessments, said Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
He said it would place the country at par with the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the Programme for International Students Assessments (PISA) by rigorously adhering to the ideals enshrined in the National Education Philosophy.
“However, we realise that challenges are a plenty in pursuit of becoming a ‘world beater’ with respect to standards and benchmarks. As a result, we have set ourselves even more ambitious goals to be achieved by 2025,” he said in his welcoming note at the Malaysian Education Blueprint Gallery Walk here Friday.
Also present were United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) director-general Irina Bokova and Malaysian Ambassador to France Tan Sri Ismail Omar.
The exhibition was held at Unesco headquarters to share Malaysia’s experience in implementing the country’s education system transformation, which is a follow-up to the ‘Education Policy Review’ conducted by Unesco.
Muhyiddin, who is also Education Minister, said Malaysia had come a long way in its efforts to continually improve the education system.
“At the onset of the country’s independence in 1957, only seven per cent of the population was educated to at least secondary level. Today, 76 per cent have completed at least secondary education; a commendable accomplishment within a short timeframe,” he said.
He noted that Malaysia had also achieved near universal primary and lower secondary school enrolment rates at 96 per cent and 91 per cent respectively.
“These achievements have been accomplished through consistently spending a significant proportion of the country’s gross domestic product, of about 16 per cent on education.
“This is markedly substantial when compared to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) spending average of 8.7 per cent,” Muhyiddin said.
Muhyiddin said at the end of 2011 and through 2012, the government initiated an independent review of its education system by conducting “National Dialogues” with the public, including over 50,000 principals, teachers, parents, students and other stakeholders.
“In parallel, we also solicited expert input from an independent review panel consisting of leading Malaysians and global educationists from Unesco, World Bank, IEA (International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement) and OECD.
“At this juncture, I would like to thank Unesco for generously and tirelessly assisting Malaysia throughout this review exercise,” he said.
The government launched the Malaysian Education Blueprint, a 13-year strategic plan which was the culmination of its multi-pronged effort to come up with tangible, actionable recommendations to meet its lofty aspirations.
“The key process components include understanding the current performance and challenges of the Malaysian school system, establishing a clear vision and aspirations for the education system and individual students over the next 13 years through to 2025.
“And also outlining a comprehensive transformation programme for the system, including key changes to the Ministry of Education and delivery system,” Muhyiddin added.
– Bernama
