KUCHING, Sept 12: It is not considered a disciplinary offense if parents or caretakers choose not to send their children to school, says Senior Education Minister Datuk Dr Mohd Radzi Md Jidin.
According to Dr Mohd Radzi, the Ministry of Education (MOE) understands that some parents are still reluctant to sent their children to school, and at the same time are worried that disciplinary action might be taken against them for doing so.
“Therefore, if a parent or guardian chooses not to send the children to school, such absence will not be considered as a disciplinary offense.
“However, parents or guardians need to write a letter to the school to explain about it and also for record purpose,” he said during a press conference livestreamed via Facebook today.
Dr Mohd Radzi noted, this approach will continue to be taken until the end of this year.
“We are balancing between trying to bring the children back to school, while taking into consideration the parent’s concerns,” he added.
Meanwhile, Dr Mohd Radzi disclosed the school session for the year 2021 will be extended until Feb 2022 and that the school session for the year 2022 will begin in March.
He explained the two-month period will be use by the ministry to gauge the students’ level of understanding (on the topic given), while at the same time to find out what kind of help, support and encouragement that they need before moving up to the next class.
“For those students who have weak understanding (of their subjects), the focus will be on the intervention process in order to enable them to reach at least the minimum level (of proficiency), before going for the next class.
“For outstanding students, this period will be used to further strengthen their understanding,” he said. — DayakDaily
