BY NURIN YUSRINA
KUCHING: The Ministry of Education Malaysia recently announced that all students would continue to attend home-based teaching and learning (PdPR) beginning June 13 and 14.
PDPR will take place for 25 days and continue until the next school holiday on July 16 and 17 as announced by the Education Minister of Education Datuk Dr Radzi Jidin.
The Ministry of Education first introduced home-based teaching and learning (PdPR) in 2020 as a new learning alternative during the implementation of the movement control order (MCO) in efforts to curb the Covid-19 virus.
Parents, interviewed by New Sarawak Tribune seemed to be really supportive of the decision.
Noor Zana Rosmadi, a stay-at-home mother, expressed her relief with the Education Ministry’s decision as she was concerned about the risk of infection to the students while they were at school.
“I am grateful that the school will remain closed. It may be difficult for parents to handle the children at home, but we just want the best for them.’
“This is one way we can help the government safeguard our children because they are still unable to participate in the National Childhood Immunisation Programme (NCIP). “Due to their age, they are too young and their immunity may not be at its peak,” she added.
A working mother, Kristiwi Hamzah, said she respected the decision but hoped the ministry would continue to improve home-based learning to meet the needs of both teachers and students.
“We don’t want to put our students in such risky situations; they’re kids, and I know many of them will not strictly adhere to the school’s standard operating procedures (SOPs),” she said.
“I feel that both schools and parents should pay more attention to monitoring children’ needs during PDPR to ensure that they are not falling behind in any of their subjects.”
Nur Hidayah Mohamad Sufian, a working mother of three, said that she agreed with the decision considering the rising number of Covid-19 cases in Sarawak.
“Everyone should adapt to online learning by now because this is no longer a choice for us.
“During difficult times, we must stick together rather than pointing fingers at one another in order to make PdPR a success.”
Aysya Marlina Wasli, a teacher and a mother, acknowledged the challenges in juggling online classes and monitoring the progress of her own child’s learning.
“It all comes down to our own sense of responsibility for our child’s or students’ learning; there are many ways for students to keep up with their learning, whether through online classes through Google Meet or messaging platforms like Telegram or WhatsApp or printed modules available for those who can’t virtually join online classes.”
“The latest PDPR framework is done with well-planned modules and standard operating procedures, aimed to aid students to learn as much as they can so as in an actual physical class.
“Ultimately, it’s all up to us whether to join in the efforts to live our lives in this new norm or to be left behind and most possibly will regret it in the long run,” she added.
