So easy to get an A these days?

Sonia Ramachandran; Chandra Devi Renganayar
New Straits Times
06-26-2011
So easy to get an A these days?
Byline: Sonia Ramachandran; Chandra Devi Renganayar
Edition: New Sunday Times
Section: Main Section

LAST week, MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek said it was "so easy" for Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia students to get an A+ grade these days.

He said this had resulted in "declining education standards" and a growing number of SPM top scorers who fail to excel at tertiary level.
Is it "so easy" to get an A nowadays? Undoubtedly, the number of A scorers keep increasing through the years. However, is this because students are smarter? Or are exams getting easier?

Former Higher Education Department director-general Prof Datuk Dr Hassan Said dismisses claims that the standards of local public examinations have declined.

"Our exams are assessed by an external examination board so they have to meet international standards. There is no such thing as declining standards. Students now are scoring better not because exams are easier but because they have more reference materials and learning support.

"In the past, there was no Internet and not much research resources," said Hassan, who is currently the vice-chancellor and president of Taylor's University.

Educators, too, believe that the standard of public examinations have increased and is, in fact, more difficult than before.

Tuition teacher Asiah Mohamed said the standard of the Bahasa Melayu paper has increased over the years.

"If you look at the UPSR, PMR and SPM papers over the last 10 years, you can see that the level of difficulty has gone up. The learning scope has also been widened to include Malay Literature.

"There is constant development and even I have to keep myself updated otherwise I will not be able to teach my students."

Asiah, who has been teaching for 25 years, said students need to be really good to get an A for the subject. She said urban students mostly obtained As in exams because they have opportunities to learn from various sources.

"Parents, schools and teachers are also all focused on ensuring that students obtain As.

"Parents who want to see their children excel invest in books, tuition classes, computers and the Internet - anything that will provide additional opportunities for their child to do well in exams.

"In schools, teachers put students through extra classes, tests and give more exercises. Every step of the way, a student's mind is tuned to getting As," said Asiah.

She said the reason top scoring students did not do well in university and in the working world was because of the spoon- feeding they had received.

"Life in university is different and they are required to be more independent. And since there is no longer hand-holding from parents and teachers, some students become lost. They are not able to cope and perform.

"They are only smart on paper but in the real world it is a different story altogether," Asiah added.

Another tuition teacher, Gurdev Singh, said Science examinations, too, were tougher now compared with before.

"Be it Physics, Chemistry, Biology or General Science, the standard of exams is on par with those in the United Kingdom and the United States. If before students were required to memorise facts, now questions are more application-based.

"This means students must have knowledge and understanding to answer questions. Memorising alone will not help them obtain As."

However, he said students need to spend more time in labs for Science subjects.

"Science is a practical subject but now students spend minimal time in the lab doing experiments. Most schools also have ill- equipped science labs or labs that are hardly used."

A retired teacher, who only wanted to be known as Ameer, said, however, that the English language syllabus and examinations had been "watered down".

"Passing marks have also been lowered. That is why you have students who are not proficient in the language obtaining As in public examinations.

"You will find that some of these students had obtained low grades or failed in the school trial exams but somehow got As in the public exams.

"The results obtained for the paper are not reflective of their capabilities and this is the reason why the quality of our workforce has become a matter of concern," said Ameer, who worked as an English language teacher for 53 years.

He said to improve proficiency of the workforce, there should be more quality teachers in schools and their positions enhanced.

"The right people in the right positions can make a whole lot of difference."

Retired secondary school principal Liong Kam Chong said those who succeed in university usually had a strong command of the English language.

"The world out there looks for qualities that can fit into a global setting," he said.

Malaysian Association of Private Colleges and Universities (MAPCU) president Datuk Dr Parmjit Singh has observed "a difference" between local students and international students from certain countries.

"We do see a difference between the capabilities and level of competency beyond the grades. For example, we find students from Mauritius, Iran, Indonesia, Maldives, Botswana, Bangladesh, India and Pakistan more capable although they have the same grades.

"Their ability to articulate, numeracy skills and their soft- skills seem to be superior.

"We are now trying to address the soft-skills of students at the tertiary level but shouldn't these have been developed during their school days?" asked Parmjit, who is also APIIT Education Group CEO.

(Copyright 2011)