KUALA LUMPUR: The Education Ministry should implement a long-term plan by projecting growth in new urban areas and population density to assess the need for construction of new schools.
Congress of Unions of Teachers in the Malaysian Education Service (Kongres) secretary-general Mohd Azizee Hasan said this was important to enhance the quality of education, which would in turn elevate the national education system.
In a Sinar Harian report today, Azizee said many did not know that there were schools in the country that did not have enough students.
"As soon as the Education Ministry can identify (schools with high density as well as low student numbers), it can address this issue by reallocating some students to schools with fewer enrolments.
"However, this method may add burden to parents as they may have to send their children to schools outside of their residential area," the Malay daily quoted him as saying.
Azizee also advised teachers serving in high-density schools to make "mental preparations" as it was not easy teaching up to 50 students at a time.
"If there are any problems, the teachers can discuss with the school administration," he added.
The newspaper today reported that there were schools in urban areas that had up to 50 students in a class, which affected the teachers focus and ability to educate effectively.
In another report, it said SM Seksyen 19 in Shah Alam had 1,000 students in Form One and Form Two.
The school's Parent Teacher Association deputy president Sharifah Muhaiziah Syed Mustafa had said there were 1,200 students in Forms Three to Five.
"The issue of high density in schools has been ongoing, almost five years ago, there were more than 2,000 students in the school," she was quoted as saying.