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No, UPSR Chinese exam paper not set at SPM level
Published:  Nov 24, 2015 10:14 AM
Updated: 9:18 AM

PARLIAMENT Education Minister Mahdzir Khalid has denied that the Chinese Language examination paper for this year’s Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) was set at the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) level.

"The accusation that the UPSR Chinese Language examination paper contained questions based on the SPM Chinese examination paper is not true," Mahdzir said in a parliamentary written reply yesterday.

"The 2015 UPSR Chinese paper was constructed based on the Chinese subject syllabus.

"The Examination Board has its own standard procedure in setting the text criteria, such as text length, scope and dimension, readable text that is social-culturally appropriate and the vocabulary used," Mahdzir said.

He was responding to Oscar Ling (DAP-Sibu) who asked the reason why the UPSR Chinese paper was set at SPM level.

However, the minister ( photo ) indirectly admitted that the Malaysian Examination Syndicate, which is in charge of the UPSR, might have used excerpt sources from China, or other sources in the controversial 2015 UPSR Chinese Language examination paper.

"(Since) the content of textbooks or sources were limited, excerpts from any authentic source, including from China, can be used, as long as the choice of the excerpts suit and fulfil the criteria set," Mahdzir said.

It was reported the pupils who sat for the UPSR Chinese paper came out crying as the subject, especially the objective questions were too difficult for them.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Wee Ka Siong was among the outraged parents who claimed that the objective questions were too difficult even for an adult to answer.

“The objective questions in the exam could not be answered confidently, even by Chinese language professors such as Lim Chooi Kwa and Hou Kok Chong. How can you expect a 12-year-old to tackle these questions?” Wee is reported as saying by The Star.

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