Students sitting for SPM, SVM, STPM, STAM gets priority to go to school - PM

Students who will sit for the main examinations will be given priority to return to school when the school session resumes.

According to Tan Sri Muhyiddin Mohd Yassin, they are candidates for Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM), Sijil Vokasional Malaysia (SVM), Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM) dan Sijil Tinggi Agama Malaysia (STAM) examinations.

The Prime Minister said, the move was to ensure that the standard operating procedure (SOP) set by the Ministry of Health could be complied with by students.

"This is to ensure that the SOP on social distancing and personal hygiene that has been set by the Ministry of Education are complied with.

"The SOP includes procedures regarding student arrivals, movement to the classroom, desk arrangement in the classroom, movement in the cafeteria and many other aspects," he said in a special message in conjunction with the Teacher's Day broadcast on television on Saturday.

Muhyiddin said, the COVID-19 outbreak has greatly altered the educational practice in the country.

"Throughout the period of the Movement Control Order (MCO), teaching and learning are no longer carried out face-to-face, instead, teachers use a variety of other methods to connect with students.

"Many use online applications such as Google Classroom, cikgooTUBE and Zoom to implement home-based learning.

"There are also teachers who use Whatsapp and Telegram. I was told that there are also teachers who offer sports training online," he said.

At the same time, the Prime Minister realised that there were still obstacles in implementing online learning at home as not all students had good internet access.

"Many do not have the right devices. For the students in this group, I know the teachers have used a variety of other methods.

"For example, some have printed questions for students’ homework and worked with PIBG to send questions to students' homes. I am deeply touched and greatly appreciate the dedication of our teachers and parents," he said.

In this regard, Muhyiddin said the digitalization process using online platforms or virtual learning would continue.

"I believe that virtual learning is the future of education. So, I urge teachers to develop online and home-based learning skills that are new to teaching," he added.