KUALA LUMPUR: The Education Ministry (MoE) has been urged to immediately disclose the standard operating procedures (SOP) for conducting Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM).
The annual national examination for 2020 will kick-off on Jan 6, 2021.
"Once again, at this current juncture, many schools are forced to close due to the Covid-19 Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO).
"But what will happen if the situation persists come Jan 2021 ?
"The Ministry of Education (MoE) has been rather silent on this.
"Is there a plan?" asked Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia (PAGE) honourary-secretary Tunku Munawirah Putra.
"The (SOPs for the) most important national examinations to be held during the time of a pandemic must be tested out carefully and urgently.
"The best time to test it out is during the SPM trial (examination), when adjustments can still be made," she said in a statement here, today.
Tunku Munawirah said, however, that even SPM trials in some schools are on hold due to the CMCO, and that school administrators are scrambling to find the best way to conduct the annual trial examinations.
"We need to learn to live with Covid-19, and we need to adhere to stringent SOPs to reduce or ultimately prevent transmission of this menacing disease.
"We are aware of much of the mechanics of its transmission and we know that proper mask wearing, (good) hygiene and strict physical distancing through effective crowd control are steps needed to be able to control and contain its spread," she added.
Tunku Munawirah said SOPs have already been set up and tested by ongoing international examinations – the A Levels, O Levels and the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE).
"It would serve the MoE well to look into the SOPs that are being practiced at international schools and exam centres such as the Cempaka School Cheras and the Sri Emas International School as model example SOPs.
"They would most likely have the highest number of students taking the tests at this moment," she said.
Tunku Munawirah said the SOPs must be made known as soon as possible so that schools can make the necessary preparations.