SHAH ALAM, March 13 — Improvements to the national education system require a lead time of several years before they can show results, said deputy prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

He said the parents must have confidence that the system was always being improved from time to time to churn out students who could compete at the international level.

“The fact is that we cannot make sudden changes... there are certain sections of the society who ask why it is only now that the minister (of education) wants to change the education system, previously there was no PT3 (Form 3 Evaluation), PBS (School-Based Evaluation). Like it or not, this is a reality and if we want to make improvements by using the old system, the result does not change.

“Parents must understand, if we want to make a shift, it cannot be done within one year, we have to do it in stages and if it is not done this way, it means that more than 5.6 million primary and secondary school children will become victims to the old education system,” he said when officiating the Sekolah Kebangsaan Seksyen 7 Colourful Carnival, at the school field, here today.

At the function, Muhyiddin also announced an allocation of RM500,000 to the school for the construction of a roofed hall without walls for use by the students.

Commenting further, Muhyiddin who is also the education minister, said changes in the education system must be carried out as the achievements of students in the country were lagging behind compared to those in the developed nations.

He cited examples of the achievements of Malaysian students in the tests that were also adopted at the international level such as the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMMS), which placed the country among the one-third group from the bottom.

“As the minister, I was surprised (to see the situation) but I have to accept the fact that our education system is still not that good and that’s why we have to find an alternative so that we can churn out not only smart children but also comparable to the students in the other countries.

“That’s why for this shift, we carried out a study to the extent that the Malaysia Education Blueprint was created where it is most important that within the 13-year period our national education system does not only improve but the student outcome also rises in stages,” he said.

The deputy prime minister, meanwhile, hit out at certain groups who accused the government of not placing enough emphasis on education throughout its administration of the country.

Muhyiddin said the government invested substantial funds for education which formed 21 per cent of the national budget where the amount was much higher compared to the allocation for education made by some countries which were more developed.

“This has been confirmed by Unesco (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) where our expenditure for education is much bigger compared to the developed nations such as the United States of America. This is clearly proven, so if there are groups who accuse that the government is not giving emphasis to education then they are lying.

“The national education system has produced many intellectuals in almost all fields such as doctors and engineers. That’s why Malaysia has shifted from a rather poor and backward nation to an almost developed nation,” he added. — Bernama