KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 11 — The Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) and Pentaksiran Tingkatan Tiga (PT3) are no longer relevant to assess students’ academic performance, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said.
She said this is why the Education Ministry (MOE) will maintain its stance on not reinstating UPSR and PT3, which were abolished in 2021 and 2022, respectively, but focus on strengthening school-based assessments (PBS) instead.
“I would like to take this opportunity to stress that we will not reverse the decision to abolish UPSR and PT3 because they are no longer relevant.
“Instead, we are giving the time and space for PBS to function effectively… because everything that happens in education must reflect the National Education Philosophy,” she said when winding up the debate on the Supply Bill 2025 at the policy stage for the MOE in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Fadhlina said PBS is a more holistic approach, encompassing assessments that focus on students’ overall development, not just grades and exam scores.
The minister said that a comparison of the education assessment systems in Malaysia with several other countries shows that Malaysia is moving in line with the global education agenda.
She said the comparison was made with countries such as Finland, the United States, Germany, Canada, Norway, Japan, Hong Kong, and Indonesia, which have also shifted from a centralised examination system to an educational assessment system.
“The implementation of PBS (in Malaysia) is also in line with the Education 2030: Incheon Declaration and Framework for Action presented on May 21, 2015, at the World Education Forum in Incheon, South Korea.
“This declaration outlines quality education assessment through continuous classroom-based assessments and more comprehensive assessments that include both cognitive and non-competitive evaluations,” she said.
On efforts to strengthen PBS, Fadhlina said the ministry introduced the Final Test of the Academic Session (UASA), which serves as a summative assessment within the evaluation component. This assessment is considered low-stakes as it reduces pressure on students.
She added that the MOE had also made improvements to UASA for the 2024/2025 academic session, including changing the reporting format from mastery levels to percentages and grades, and providing schools and teachers with greater autonomy in its implementation.
— Bernama
