No Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR), Pentaksiran Tingkatan Tiga (PT3), Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) and Sijil Vokasional Malaysia (SVM) examinations will be held this year.

Education Minister Dr Mohd Radzi Md Jidin in a special press conference here today announced that this year’s UPSR and PT3 examinations slated for September and early October have been cancelled, while SPM and SVM examinations slated for October and early November, have been postponed to the first quarter of 2021.

He said the cancellation of the UPSR will not affect the assessment of students after attending primary education as the assessment could be done through various means.

“As the result of UPSR is one of the criteria for admission to full boarding schools (SBP), Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Agama (SMKA), Mara Junior Science College (MRSM) and Royal Military College (RMC), the MOE will introduce new method for this purpose, which is not solely focused on academic performance.

“The cancellation of the PT3 examination will also not affect the assessment of the performance of students in the lower secondary level.

“A new assessment method will be introduced. The result from this assessment will be used as one of the criteria for admission to specific schools such as full-boarding or technical schools,” he said.

Nevertheless, the minister stressed that, in any case, the students’ access to teaching and learning process will remain a priority.

Mohd Radzi said the decision applies to all government schools, government-aided schools, private schools and any educational institution registered with the MOE.

“Schools which are not registered with the MOE are also encouraged to follow this decision,” he said.

Meanwhile, the minister said for Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM), the examination date for Semester 2 has been changed to August, while the examination for Semester 3 will be held in the first quarter of 2021.

The Sijil Tinggi Agama Malaysia (STAM) will also be held in the first quarter of next year.

“Realising that the postponement of the examination dates will affect the admission to tertiary institutions, the MOE and the Ministry of Higher Education have agreed to also postpone the date of admission to tertiary institutions for foundation, matriculation and diploma programmes to July or August 2021, while for degree programmes to September or October 2021,” he added.

-- BERNAMA