PETALING JAYA, Nov 22 — Changes were made to the format of the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) Moral paper to encourage better critical thinking and maturity in the students’ answers, says the Education Ministry.

The ministry said in a statement that the format adhered to the assessment book.

It said Part A of the paper had eight structured questions carrying 10 marks each while Part B had three essay questions, of which students are required to answer two. Each question carried 10 marks.

“The essay questions allowed students to critically evaluate and make decisions on the subject matter. 

“The questions tested their knowledge and maturity on various moral aspects.

“The three essay questions were presented in a manner that allowed students to give a wider response based on their ability to apply moral values in their daily lives. 

“This approach allows students to produce reasonable ideas and not focus on memorising,” the ministry said.

The Malay Mail was flooded with complaints from parents and students on Wednesday when they discovered the format of the paper had been changed without notice.

The last-minute change caught many students and teachers unaware, resulting in panic.

Scenes described by parents and teachers reflected chaos and desperation.

They said some students cried after the paper while others were furious that they wasted two years preparing for the paper.

Another parent, who is also a teacher, said he checked with other teachers and discovered that most were not informed of the changes.

Moral studies is a compulsory subject for non-Muslim students. It is considered an easy subject to score an A.

Meanwhile, several History teachers also expressed  unhappiness that the Higher Order Thinking Skills module was introduced this year.

They claimed the ministry informed them of the change a few weeks before the start of the exams but said it would only be implemented next year.

“What is the use of the syllabus if the Higher Order Thinking Skills module suddenly carries so much weight?” they asked.

The History Paper Two had three essay questions carrying 20 marks each and four other questions carrying 10 marks each.

The Higher Order Thinking Skills module requires a student to think outside the box and present an opinion backed by concrete evidence.

National Union of Teaching Profession Malaysia (NUTP) president Hashim Adnan said the Malaysian Examinations Syndicate (MES) cannot simply make changes at their whims as last- minute changes hurts the chances of a student scoring well.

“This is wrong,” he said, adding that if MES had wanted to make changes, it should have been done at the start of the school year and not just before the exams.

He said eleventh-hour changes  would put more pressure on them.

“With History being a compulsory paper to pass, it could make a difference whether a student passes or fails the SPM.”

Hashim said MES must ensure students fully understood the changes before implementation.

The ministry, he said, should  remove History as a compulsory paper until the problem was sorted out.