Sabah Education Department Datuk Raisin Saidin showing the 2024 SPM examination analysis for Sabah.
KOTA KINABALU: A targeted intervention initiative by the Sabah Education Department has shown encouraging results, with fewer students missing the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination and a consistent improvement in academic performance across the state.
Its director, Datuk Raisin Saidin, said that the number of absentees recorded in the 2024 SPM dropped to 905, down from 984 in 2023, representing a reduction of 79 candidates or 0.23%.
“This may seem like a small figure, but even if one student does not sit for the SPM, we are deeply concerned.
“That is why we begin identifying at-risk students as early as Form One and Form Four, particularly those from B40 families or challenging backgrounds,” he said.
Under the department’s intervention programme, schools carried out proactive outreaches such as home visits, counselling sessions, and distributing examination schedules and flyers to motivate students to sit for their exams, whether in urban or rural areas.
“In some cases, students had to work to support their families or marry early. But thanks to personal engagement and support from schools, we were able to bring many of them back into the system,” he said.
Raisin stressed the importance of ensuring every student completes the full 11 years of basic education, six years in primary and the remaining five in secondary school.
“If we start with some 40,000 students in Year One, we want to see the same 40,000 sitting for SPM, unless an unfortunate incident prevents it. That is our commitment.”
In flood-prone areas, the department activated Ops Payung, an emergency initiative where essential learning materials were delivered to affected students ahead of their examinations.
Initially designed to support SPM and STPM candidates during disasters, Ops Payung will now be extended to non-exam periods to ensure continuous learning.
“With the weather being so unpredictable, we cannot afford to let our students fall behind. Ops Payung will be activated even during regular school breaks,” said Raisin.
On academic performance, Raisin reported steady progress over the past three years, with the state’s average grade improving from 5.35 in 2021 to 5.22 in 2022, 5.09 in 2023, and 5.00 in 2024.
The number of students eligible for the SPM certificate also rose, from 38,800 in 2023 to 39,500 in 2024, an increase of 750 candidates.
Of those, 38,053 were new candidates who sat for at least six subjects, while private school students made up 1,185, and 2,425 were private candidates.
“The performance gap between urban and rural schools remains, but both areas have shown encouraging progress,” he said.
Urban students recorded a 0.10-point improvement, scoring an average of 4.65 in 2024 compared to 4.75 in 2023.
Rural candidates also improved, achieving 5.21 points in 2024, up from 5.28 the year before.
The number of candidates scoring straight A+, A or A- in all subjects also increased from 484 (1.38%) in 2023 to 580 (1.65%) in 2024.
Of the 73 subjects assessed, seven maintained the same performance, 38 saw improvement, while 28 registered a decline.
Five of the subjects were introduced under new formats last year.
“We are particularly concerned with the drop in two subjects, Moral Education and History, which fell by 0.04 and 5.16 points respectively,” said Raisin.
“We are now reviewing teaching techniques, especially for History, a compulsory pass subject. The issue is not a lack of student interest, but finding more effective teaching methods.”
While congratulating high achievers, Raisin also encouraged students who did not meet expectations to persevere.
“This is only the beginning. Never give up, continue striving for your dreams. Every step forward is a step towards greater success,” he said.
