SIBU: The Ministry of Education (MOE) has been urged to retract its directive and retain the original standard for A grades in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) for entry into the Matriculation Programme.
In making the call, Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) Assistant Information and Publicity Secretary, Wong Ching Yong, stressed that MOE should continue classifying A- as part of the A grade category.
“Changing the grading standard only after the exam results have been released would unfairly exclude numerous students who originally met the criteria, possibly inviting international ridicule and harming Malaysia’s reputation,” he said at a press conference during the joint SUPP Dudong and SUPP Sibu Jaya branches’ mobile service held at Farley Foodcourt, Jalan Salim here today.
According to Wong, who is also SUPP Dudong branch chairman, under the original standard, students who scored 10As in the SPM — whether A, A+, or A- — were all considered as having achieved A grades, making them eligible for the Matriculation Programme, as announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim last year.
However, according to Wong, Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) President, Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong, revealed that the MOE issued an internal directive on April 30 stating that A- would no longer be classified as an A grade.
Wong added that this change had disqualified many students from gaining admission to public universities.
He said that if the new standard had been announced before last year’s SPM exam, it might have been acceptable.
However, he argued that implementing the change only after the results were released was completely inappropriate.
Wong drew an analogy between the A- issue and the Badminton World Federation holding a tournament with the official rule that the first to score 21 points would win.
“But once a player scores 21 points, the referee suddenly changes the rule to 30 points.
“Who can accept such last-minute rule changes?” he asked.
“We solemnly urge the Education Minister and Deputy Minister not to treat students as test subjects.
“When there is public concern over a new policy, they should listen and engage in meaningful dialogue rather than dismiss public opinions and act unilaterally,” said Wong.
