KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of Education (MOE) has placed 13,749 new teachers in primary and secondary schools across the country this year to address shortages in stages, in collaboration with the Education Service Commission (SPP).
Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said that as of October 31, the teacher placement rate for primary schools was 97.62 per cent and 95.16 per cent for secondary schools.
“We always ensure that teacher placements are done back to back,“ she said, adding that the placement also takes into account subject options that are short of teachers.
“The issue of teacher shortages is something we are addressing diligently. We are confident in the ability of the SPP and MOE to resolve this issue gradually and continuously,“ she said when winding up the debate on the Supply Bill (Budget) 2025 at the committee stage for her ministry in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Meanwhile, she noted that the placement rate for staff in the implementing group has increased to 97 per cent as of November 30, compared to 84 per cent in 2023.
She said efforts to optimise recruitment for the group are part of the MADANI government’s efforts to lighten the administrative and management burdens on teachers.
Fadhlina said she had instructed MOE’s school inspectors to check the implementation of the seven measures laid out by the ministry to reduce teachers’ burdens so that they can be fully addressed.
The measures include the discontinuation of any form of competition, celebration, or ceremony at all levels, which do not have a significant impact on student learning, and reducing the frequency of the review of school management elements of the Malaysian Education Quality Standard (SKPM) involving teachers, to only once a year.
The Dewan Rakyat later approved the operating and development expenditure of RM64,190,049,400 allocated to MOE in Budget 2025, with more votes in favour after 26 MPs debated it.