Bringing Malaysia into the top third category of the best education systems in the world is one of the goals of the BN if it is returned to power in the upcoming general election.

It plans to do so by improving the quality of national schools, according to the BN election manifesto launched by caretaker PM and BN chief Najib Razak tonight.

Titled 'People First', the manifesto highlights the BN's promise to enhance the command of Bahasa Malaysia and English from the pre-school level, and make English a compulsory pass subject in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination.  

Besides building more schools of all types in areas of high demand, the BN is committed to improving access to quality education for the rural and minority communities, especially in Sabah and Sarawak.

Enhancing students' performance in Science and Mathematics, and developing higher order thinking skills in them are also targets to be achieved, and so is expanding single-session schooling.

Parents and students alike will be happy with the BN's promise to provide more merit-based scholarships, with special provisions for disadvantaged communities while school administrators will smile with the coalition's vow to continue special allocations to all types of schools.

Another five-year mandate will see the BN providing financial incentives of RM100,000 per annum for schools with classes for special needs children.

Some RM2 billion was allocated by the BN government from 2012 until this year to upgrade and improve all schools in the country.

Enhance teacher training

Revamping Teacher Training Colleges and raising the qualification bar for trainee teachers are also on the cards, so is providing new career pathways to allow performance-based fast tracking promotion of 420,000 teachers.

The BN government had provided RM500 million for 2013 to enhance teacher training and introduce fast-track performance-based promotion for teachers.

The manifesto also points to a simplified teaching and learning system for Bahasa Malaysia in Chinese and Tamil schools.

The BN's other promises include:

  • Converting SJKTs (Tamil schools) that wish to change status into fully aided schools;
  • Setting up ICT labs in all schools that require them;
  • Transforming vocational schools into colleges and increasing enrolment to 20 percent of the student population;
  • Expanding pre-school education to cover all types of schools;
  • Providing free and guaranteed broadband WiFi on all campuses of public institutions; and
  • Introducing a laptop ownership scheme in schools bundled with Internet access.
- Bernama