Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said today the government has no plan to require teachers to obtain teaching licence, saying it was not suitable for implementation in the country.

He said the matter was only brought up for discussion during a retreat organised by the Education Ministry recently.

The government was of the opinion that a practising licence for teachers similar to those impose on doctors, lawyers and accountants was not suitable for implementation in the country, he said.

"It was just a suggestion mooted by teachers and principals during the retreat.

"I've looked into the matter and feel that it is not suitable for implementation. It will not be implemented," he told reporters after attending the Setiawangsa parliamentary constituency Family Day.

deputy prime minister muhyiddin yassin at masjid kampung sentosa batang kali 020410 04 Muhyiddin ( left ), who is also the education minister, was commenting on the statement made by his deputy Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi yesterday that the ministry was looking into making it compulsory for teachers to obtain a teaching licence as part of the measures to safeguard the integrity of the profession and to achieve a world-class education system.

Several groups objected to the proposal, including the National Union of Teaching Profession which said that licensing was costly and not suitable for the Malaysian education system.

Muhyiddin said the ministry had its own methods to gauge the quality of teachers.

"If we find that they are not up to the mark, we will send them for training; so the question of licensing does not arise.

"Although licensing is implemented in other countries, in Malaysia, education is provided by the government. We do require private schools and colleges to have a licence but not for teachers," he said.

Meanwhile, Muhyiddin said the private sector and the society at large responded well to the provision of a government grant for the private sector to set up pre-school facilities.

"Under the grant, the private sector will be given assistance to open pre-school facilities in housing areas. We can help them but they will have to inform us," he said.

The grant, announced recently, is given to the private sector to set up pre-school education facilities provided that they follow the curriculum set by the government.

- Bernama