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Long delay a mental strain on exam-year students

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Mental health of students sitting for major exams can take a dive if government doesn’t act soon, warns Malaysian Mental Health Association.

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Free Malaysia Today
The education ministry has not offered a viable alternative to the SPM examinations, and students will go into the exams under the strain of a pandemic and floods. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA:
The country could see a new wave of young students facing psychological issues if the current education system is not tweaked to meet the demands of the new normal, the Malaysian Mental Health Association (MMHA) has warned.

While a return to school with the necessary precautions may help to restore some sense of normalcy, MMHA president Dr Andrew Mohanraj said expecting students to sit for public examinations amid the pandemic – and floods in some states – seemed unfair.

“The SPM is a public examination that can determine the pathway to tertiary education and future career of students . It cannot be taken lightly and there must be a level playing field for rural and urban students,” he told FMT.

According to Mohanraj, secondary school students made up “a significant portion” of those reaching out to the association for help in the past year, especially those sitting for the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM).

Free Malaysia Today
Dr Andrew Mohanraj.

He said most of their concerns revolved around performance anxiety, inadequacies of online learning and the fear of losing out on tertiary placements, all of which could cause anxiety and depression.

“Those who have the means and awareness will seek help but others will have to suffer in silence. There is a danger of the entire cohort of exam-going secondary school students facing a tremendous loss of self-esteem, through no fault of theirs,” he said, adding that this could lead to suicidal thoughts or attempts.

Andrew said the government should take the opportunity to review the secondary school and examination system, as some forms of online learning will be part of the new normal even after the pandemic subsides.

He added that Putrajaya might have to rethink “the relevance” of holding public exams during the Covid-19 crisis, as it would likely “skew results not reflective of the actual calibre of students”.

Free Malaysia Today
Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim.

Meanwhile, Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim, chairman of The Parent Action Group for Education (PAGE), urged the education ministry to look into “aligning SPM subjects with global online platforms”.

“This in future will prepare our students better in higher order thinking skills as they are assessed through Trends International Mathematics and Science (Timss) and the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) without having to rely heavily on teachers,” she said.

However, Noor Azimah said the SPM exams should go ahead as no other alternative has been offered by the ministry at this stage. This was not unexpected as such alternatives required fundamental changes to the system, she added.

In order to ease the burden of Form 5 students when they return to school on Jan 20, she suggested that the ministry allow students to sit for a maximum of five core subjects per session.

Free Malaysia Today
Teo Kok Seong.

“The schools too can totally focus on teaching core subjects only while eliminating non-academic activities, as time is of the essence. Students need as much help as possible to minimise any mental health and overall wellbeing issues.”

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) professor Teo Kok Seong agreed with the move for SPM to continue under strict standard operating procedures, as Malaysia was not prepared to conduct teachers’ assessments in lieu of examinations as was being done in the UK.

Teo, who was formerly on the National Education Blueprint committee, said students still needed the examination certificate to apply for both local and foreign universities, as well as jobs, later on in life.

“The students’ frustration is understandable and there is pressure on the government to do something about it, but I believe they have done their best given the unprecedented situation,” he said.

Free Malaysia Today
Mak Chee Kin.

“Everyone knows that this year’s SPM is an unusual version and employers should show some sympathy for this cohort in the future.”

Melaka Action Group for Parents in Education (Magpie) chairman Mak Chee Kin said any decision made by the education ministry would not be able to satisfy everybody.

He suggested that disadvantaged students be “more proactive and find themselves the best possible studying option, environment and help”, and reach out to their teachers for assistance.

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