PETALING JAYA: A Malaysian primary school has secured a place among the global top 10 finalists for the World's Best School Prizes 2025.
SK Putrajaya Presint 11(1) was named in the Top 10 shortlist for the World’s Best School Prize for Supporting Healthy Lives.
The school was recognised for its innovative HELPIE health mobile application, designed to improve students' mental well-being by offering tools for stress identification and management, along with fun games and health campaigns.
Since its implementation, the school has seen a 60% drop in student stress levels. More than 90% of students report a better understanding of their emotions, and 87% say they understand their stress levels better.
The initiative also led the school to win the prestigious AIA Healthiest Schools Competition last year.
Efforts are underway to publish HELPIE on Google Play for integration into the counselling programmes of more schools.
The primary school stands a chance to win part of the US$250,000 (RM1.06mil) prize, which will be equally shared among winners of the five prizes, with each receiving US$50,000 (RM212,525).
The five World's Best School Prizes, founded 2022 by T4 Education, are the world's most prestigious education prizes.
T4 Education and the World's Best School Prizes founder, Vikas Pota, said: "In a world being turned upside down by AI, as technology reshapes the way we learn and renders jobs that have existed for centuries obsolete, amid growing challenges of climate change, conflict, poverty, and populism, the world our young people are entering has never felt more precarious. And a good education, with humans at its heart, has never been more important.
“It is in schools like SK Putrajaya Presint 11(1) where we find the innovations and expertise that give us hope for a better future.
“Congratulations on becoming a finalist for the World’s Best School Prizes 2025. Leaders and schools around the world have so much to learn from this inspirational Malaysian institution,” he said in a press release on Wednesday (June 18).
The five World's Best School Prizes – for Community Collaboration, Environmental Action, Innovation, Overcoming Adversity, and Supporting Healthy Lives – will be chosen by an expert Judging Academy based on rigorous criteria.
Additionally, all 50 finalist schools across the five prizes will participate in a Public Vote, which opened on Wednesday (June 18), to determine the winner of the Community Choice Award.
All six winners will be announced in October.
The winners and finalists of these global school prizes will be invited to the World Schools Summit in Abu Dhabi, UAE, on November 15 to 16, where they will share their best practices and unique expertise with policymakers and leading figures in global education.
