Speaker, the Minister did not use all of her allocated 20 minutes, and I hope I'll be given the rest of her remaining minutes.
The UDM welcomes the overall direction of the Curriculum Review Process announced by the Minister. The intention to simplify the administrative load of teachers is a worthy objective and something that the UDM wholeheartedly supports. These curriculum changes are moving in the direction the UDM has been calling for, namely a back-to-basics approach to education. It should be obvious that what we need is for teachers to teach and for students to study.
We can only hope that these changes will signal the end of the road for the ruling party's disastrous flirtation with the so-called "outcomes-based education". Employers and universities report that many of the matriculants of this policy lack basic learning and comprehension skills.
The other two important issues which need urgent attention are: Firstly, government should reintroduce school inspectors, which is the only way to address the casual disdain for proper education prevalent at many schools.
Secondly, the current neglect of career advice at school level must be revised. Relegating such an important topic to the periphery of the curriculum is only contributing to the hundreds of thousands of matriculants who annually leave school without having an idea of the careers they intend to pursue. Thank you for the extra minutes.