Exams for Year One to Three pupils to be scrapped

PUTRAJAYA: Year One, Two and Three pupils can say goodbye to having to sit for mid-year and final-year exams come next year.

Education director-general Datuk Dr Amin Senin said the abolition of these exams for young children will ensure teachers focus on character building instead of exam preparation.

“This decision is not out of the blue,” he told reporters during a briefing on the implementation of assessments for Level One pupils here on Wednesday.

Dr Amin said classroom-based assessments have been around since 2011 but unfortunately, schools have only focused on preparing students for exams instead of developing their character.

Classroom-based assessments for Level One pupils, he explained, are meant to be student-centred, fun and contain 21st-century learning elements.

He also said pupils will be continuously assessed throughout their early three schooling years using different instruments such as quizzes and simple projects.

He added that parents and teachers should also constantly engage with each other to discuss the child's progress and to carry out interventions if necessary.