Malaysia

Curriculum planning, development

and reform

Zamrus Bin A. Rahman and Mokelas Bin Ahmad

Estimated population (1995)
Public expenditure on education as
percentage of Gross National Product
(1995)
Duration of compulsory education
(years)
INTRODUCTION
20,100,000
Legal foundation
5.2
The Education Act 1996 (Act 550, Laws of Malaysia) pro-
vides the fundamental basis for curriculum policies in Ma-
laysia. It indicates the specific laws and provisions that
11 give direction to curriculum documents. These regula-
tions are mandatory for all schools.

Primary or basic education Education goals and objectives

Pupils enrolled (1995) 3,100,000 The country’s educational goals are manifested in the Ma-
Teachers (1995) 140,342 laysian National Education Philosophy (NEP) which
Pupil/teacher ratio 19:1 states that:

Gross enrolment ratio, (1995) Education in Malaysia is an on-going effort towards fur-
—Total 92 ther developing the potential of individuals in a holistic
—Male 92 and integrated manner so as to produce individuals who
—Female 92 are intellectually, spiritually, emotionally and physically
balanced and harmonious, based on a firm belief in and
Net enrolment ratio (1995) devotion to God. Such an effort is designed to produce
—Total 91 Malaysian citizens who are knowledgeable and compe-
—Male 91 tent, who possess high moral standards, and who are re-
—Female 92 sponsible and capable of achieving a high level of
personal well-being, as well as being able to contribute to
Estimated percentage of repeaters – the betterment of the family, the society and the nation at
(1995) large.
Estimated percentage of drop-outs 6
(1995) The education system
School-age population out of school 280,000 A uniform system of education in both primary and sec-
(1995) ondary schools has been established whereby a national
curriculum is used in all schools. Common central assess-
Secondary education
ment and examinations at the end of the respective periods
of schooling are also being practised. The national lan-
Students enrolled (1995) 1,640,461
guage, Malay, is the official language of instruction.
Gross enrolment ratio (1995)
—Total 62 Curriculum philosophy
—Male 58 The school curriculum is expected to contribute to the ho-
—Female 66 listic development of the individual (mental, emotional,
physical, spiritual) by imparting general knowledge and
Third-level enrolment ratio (1995) 10.6 skills, fostering healthy attitudes and instilling accepted
Estimated adult literacy rate (1995) moral values. The aim is to produce Malaysian citizens
—Total 83 who are balanced, trained, skilful and cherish the national
—Male 89 aspiration for unity.
—Female 78 The general direction for on-going curriculum
reform is to improve the quality of education in order to
Source: UNESCO statistical yearbook, 1998, Paris. achieve the aims of the National Education Philosophy

88
(NEP). The NEP has been geared towards achieving the
nation’s vision to prepare children to become knowledge-
able, trained and skilled individuals to meet the growing
needs of the millennium. It is envisaged that this can be
achieved by emphasizing science and technology, use of
information technology, and inculcating good moral and
work ethics suitable for the Information Age. The school
curriculum is designed to achieve the intended learning
outcomes for different ability levels.
CURRICULUM DESIGN
The national curriculum promotes unity through the use of
a single medium of instruction (the national language) and
the provision of the same core subjects for all pupils in all
schools within the National Education System. However,
the cultural diversity of different ethnic groups in Malay-
sia is preserved through the existence of National Type
Schools, which are allowed to use other major ethnic lan-
guages as the medium of instruction.
The underlying theoretical principle of national cur-
riculum formulation is that of general education, using an
integrated approach in curriculum planning. The curricu-
lum comprises content and skills, with emphasis on the
development of basic skills, the acquisition of knowledge
and thinking skills. Each subject must also incorporate
the inculcation of moral values and attitudes and the cor-
rect use of Malay and other languages, such as English,
Chinese and Tamil.
The integrated approach is the main focus in the
design of the Integrated Curriculum for Primary School
and Integrated Curriculum for Secondary School. The
elements of knowledge, skills and values are incorpo-
rated so as to bring the integrated development of the
intellectual, spiritual, emotional and physical aspects of
the individual.
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND
MECHANISMS OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT
Malaysia’s system of curriculum development is central-
ized. The Ministry of Education through its central agen-
cy, namely the Curriculum Development Centre (CDC),
is responsible for initiating curriculum development. The
CDC is responsible for the development of the pre-school,
primary school and secondary school curriculum. In the
implementation of the curriculum, however, various com-
mittees have been set up in the Ministry of Education,
State Education Departments, Divisions/District Educa-
tion Offices and schools.
1. Educational Planning Committee. (Secretariat: Educa-
tional Planning and Research Division, Ministry of Edu-
cation.) Functions:
l to approve and formulate the major policies in the
Ministry of Education;
l to consider all projects related to policy matters.
89
2. Central Curriculum Committee. (Secretariat: Central
Curriculum Committee, Ministry of Education.) Func-
tions:
l to formulate curriculum policies, as well as study
their implications;
l to determine the direction of curriculum develop-
ment and co-ordinate efforts to achieve this goal;
l to consider and make recommendations concerning
education planning and implementation, as well as to
present these findings to the Educational Planning
Committee;
l to study the implications of curriculum programmes
and to make decisions accordingly;
l to determine aspects which require research and
study.
3. Curriculum Implementation Committee. (Secretariat:
Central Curriculum Committee, Ministry of Education.)
Functions:
l responsible for co-ordinating all levels of preparation
in implementing any curriculum programmes
approved by the Central Curriculum Committee;
l to ensure co-ordination between the divisions of the
Ministry and the State Education Departments in the
implementation of the curriculum;
l to gather feedback on curriculum implementation at
the State, division/district and school levels;
l to organize forums to discuss successful innovative
programmes implemented at the State level.
4. State Curriculum Committee. Functions:
l to monitor, assess and guide principals, headmasters
and teachers in the implementation of the curricu-
lum;
l to gather and analyze information and take the neces-
sary follow-up action;
l to co-ordinate the implementation of activities
between policy makers and implementers at the Min-
istry, division/district and school levels;
l to co-ordinate the use of resources for curriculum
implementation;
l to plan, manage and co-ordinate courses organized
for teachers by the State Education Department;
l to plan, manage and implement innovative projects;
l to improve professionalism among teachers.
5. Division/District Curriculum Committee. Functions:
l to plan activities and curriculum implementation
strategies at division/district levels;
l to arrange and organize courses and seminars to dis-
seminate the latest information to teachers and all
personnel concerned;
l to advise and guide teachers in curriculum imple-
mentation;
l to monitor, supervise and evaluate the implementa-
tion of the curriculum;
l to provide feedback to the higher authorities on the
implementation of the curriculum;
l to plan, manage and implement innovative projects at
the division/district levels.
6. School Curriculum Committee. Functions:
l to plan, organize and evaluate teaching/learning
activities in schools;
l to work towards increasing the knowledge and com-
petence of teachers and students;
l to study the suitability of the subject content and
inform parties concerned;
l to study, evaluate and determine the suitability of
textbooks or other materials;
l to assess the scheme of work;
l to assess pupil performance and to identify follow-up
action;
l to plan and conduct in-house training programmes
for all teachers;
l to disseminate information to all teachers on the lat-
est progress and development in education;
l to produce more educational resource materials in
schools;
l to identify suitability of educational electronic media
programmes in teaching-learning activities;
l to co-operate in the on-going assessment in schools;
l to co-ordinate additional learning activities.
ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION
Centralized examinations are held at the end of Year VI,
Form III and Form V. The results of these examinations
are used to evaluate the effectiveness of the curriculum.
Examination results also provide feedback to the planners
to improve students’ achievement. Based on the analysis
90
of students’ scores by items, their achievement in the var-
ious skills can be inferred. Should the performance drop
below the expected standard, related divisions of the Min-
istry look into the problem and take prompt action to im-
prove students’ future achievement.
The various divisions of the Ministry also carry out
related studies to find out the impact of the curriculum on
students’ achievement. These focus on specific areas of
interest, and information is commonly collected using
surveys, class observations or test items. Information
obtained reflects the effectiveness of the curriculum and
the Ministry is required from time to time to take follow-
up action, such as reviewing the syllabus, textbooks and
other teaching materials, and improving teacher/learning
strategies.
CONCLUSION
Careful planning is necessary to ensure the implementa-
tion of the curriculum. Thus, the school plays an important
role in creating a conducive environment encouraging ex-
cellence. In this respect, headmasters and teachers need to
understand and internalize the National Education Philos-
ophy, the aims and objectives of the National Education
Policy and the integrated approach of the curriculum.
Apart from the school and parents, society also plays an
important role. The success of the curriculum depends on
society’s support in assisting the school to develop pupils’
personalities and to participate actively in matters relating
to education.