KOTA KINABALU: The Education Ministry will not set key performance indicators (KPI) for schools to conduct home visits said education director-general Datuk Dr Amin Senin.
Noting that the home visits called 'Ziarah Cakna' is a core programme, Amin said schools are encouraged to do home visitation to further strengthen the relationship between parents and teachers.
“I had asked the Ministry whether there is a KPI and there is none. It depends on the school how they want to implement it. Every school has its own uniqueness and it’s up to the school to decide who and how many houses they want to visit.
“The objective must be clear and that is to close the gap between parents and teachers. We want to appreciate the role of parents in helping the school. So, there is no specific method (on how to carry out home visits),” he told reporters after launching the Programme at SMK Tobobon, here, today.
Also present at the event, launched simultaneously nationwide, were Sabah Education director Mistrine Radin, SMK Tobobon principal Ajmal Jumah, and SMK Tobobon Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) chairman Taidin Suhaimin.
Previously, the home visit programme only focused on visiting the home of problematic or students who dropped out.
This year, the programme is expanded to include visiting the homes of students who have done well to honour and get to know the parents.
Amin said there was a need to change parents’ perception that when school representatives visit their home, it does not necessarily mean their children have caused problems at school.
After the launching, he visited the home of 17-year-old Sharleenah Sakka, who is one of SMK Tobobon’s best students, at Kampung Tobobon and gave her words of encouragement.
Sharleenah’s father Sakka Matta, 54, extended his gratitude to the Education Ministry and the school for continuously showing support to students in need of help as well as those with excellent performance.
“SMK Tobobon has actually conducted home visits since 2010. The school conducted visits with parents and we have done 167 visits, thus far.
“Through this partnership, both teachers and parents will be able to learn about the background of a student and find solutions to their schools as well as education problems,” said Sakka, who is also the vice-chairman of SMK Tobobon PTA.
In the visit, Amin commended SMK Tobobon and the school’s PTA for taking initiative to conduct home visits by engaging parents, stressing such move should be continued.
He also visited another house in the same village, and another two homes in Kampung Suang Parai.