KUALA LUMPUR: A welcome change from the rigid-old streaming system with broader choices for students is how proponents view the new streaming system for Form Four students. However, there are doubts over its implementation.
On Monday, Deputy Education Minister Teo Nie Ching announced that the arts and science stream for Form Four next year would be replaced with STREAM comprising Science, Technology, Reading, Arts and Music, including electives.
A letter/circular explaining the changes and the new subjects available has been sent to secondary schools.
“It’s a welcome change. The old streaming system was rigid,” said Parents Action Group for Education chairman Datin Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim.
She said this would allow students to have greater flexibility on what they wanted to study.
“It is good that physical exercise has become compulsory. However, I would like to stress the lack of information and communications technology (ICT) subjects. With the world going digital, there is a lack of emphasis on ICT in the new system. Some thought has been put into it, but the fact that the ‘package’ is spelt out will make its implementation a challenge.
“Its effective implementation depends on a school’s readiness and this presents a challenge. A school can decide whether it is ready (to adopt the new system). Some may not have the number of teachers or resources required to teach the elective subjects. On its workability, I expect next year to be a ‘status quo’, but I believe we will start seeing results in 2021.”
National Union of the Teaching Profession secretary-general Harry Tan lauded the new system as it was student-centred.
“Students must be given the liberty to choose what they want to study and become in life. Schools are there to help them, not force down their throats what they want them to be.”
He said although students were left to make their choices, parents were welcome to discuss the options with school administrators, teachers and counsellors.
On how successful the new system would be, Tan said: “It depends on the pace of response. In this aspect, we want the administrators involved to deal with problems that may arise in a one-week timeframe.”
National STEM Movement chairman Datuk Professor Noraini Idris had her doubts as she believed the existing Science-Arts streaming system should be maintained.
However, she said, a pilot project to review the new system should be conducted.
“This is the digital era and the Fourth Industrial Revolution. For our country to progress, we need to produce good talents in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
“If we allow students to choose their own combination of subjects, we do not know whether they will have a strong enough foundation to deal with scientific programmes at universities or whether they are good enough to perform science-intensive and hi-tech jobs.”
Retired school teacher Agnes V. Poon said there was a possibility students would pick easier-to-score subjects with little thought about their relevance or how they would fare at the tertiary level.
She said fields such as engineering and medicine required pure science subjects, which were entry requirements into universities.