Survey Report of Stakeholders’ Perceptions on School Reopening

With regard to the school levels which are relevant to the categories of these various stakeholders, 49.8% would associate with high school, 31% with college, while primary and kindergarten levels are at 13.5% and 5.7% respectively.

The current locations of the respondents spread across the country as follows.

Key Findings

Perception towards the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for School Reopening

Overall, 64.65% disagreed or strongly disagreed that the by-phase school reopening in September/October is justified. 69.3% disagreed or strongly disagreed that the SOPs are detailed, organized, and convincing. 42.79% disagreed or strongly disagreed that the school reopening is justified with strict SOPs such as reducing the size of the number of pupils at one time, physical distancing, and wearing of face masks, use of sanitation, etc. However, a close 39.71% on the other hand agreed or strongly agreed with the statement.

Perception towards health and safety levels

Overall, 79.07% disagreed or strongly disagreed that school reopening is justified in the event of new active cases and the number of deaths due to COVID infection are still at a high level. 86.05% also disagreed or strongly disagreed that school reopening is justified in a situation where students under the age of 18 will not be vaccinated. In the view that school reopening is safe with current vaccination rates among teachers, administrators, and support staff at schools, 64.65% disagreed or strongly disagreed. 59.53% agreed or strongly agreed that school reopening is desirable if all students in a school have been vaccinated.

Perceptions towards welfare implications

Overall, 44.65% agreed or strongly agreed that school reopening will have a positive impact on learning and teaching outcomes. Similarly, 40.87% agreed or strongly agreed that school reopening will have a positive impact on their mental health. The view that the school reopening will have a positive impact on their family’s finances and economy is agreed or strongly agreed by 38.14%.

Perceptions towards the effectiveness of Online Distance Learning (ODL)

Overall, 60.47% disagreed or strongly disagreed that the ODL for the last 16 months has been effective. 38.6% disagreed or strongly disagreed that the level of the infrastructures for online learning in their areas are satisfactory.

Current challenges in online learning

When asked about any challenges in online learning which they may face, 56.28% report being concerned with Internet access, 47.44% find the workloads for students are heavy, 27.91% assert the impediment due to the lack of suitable digital devices, 27.44% observes the burden of heavy workloads for teachers, while 16.28% claims to face no challenges.

Perceptions towards stakeholder involvement in policymaking

Overall, 63.25% disagreed or strongly disagreed that their voice as stakeholders in the education sector is heard properly in policymaking. 59.07% disagreed or strongly disagreed that an effective platform to voice out their concerns around policymaking related to school matters is within their knowledge.

Recommendations

In the open-ended section of the survey, respondents may share their comments and suggestions for the Ministry of Education Malaysia. Based on the inputs, several recurring issues have been identified and deemed crucial to be considered by the policymakers surrounding this policy.

• Give schools greater autonomy

The situations on the ground are complex depending on various factors such as the levels of COVID-19 risks, population densities, etc. Therefore, the approach to policymaking in this issue needs to address these differences, instead of implementing one-size-fits-all blanket policies. School leaders should be empowered in deciding what is best for the school under their care.

• Heighten measures for safety

The crisis happening in education at the moment is strongly linked to the management of public health in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Vaccination is significant in keeping everyone safe, therefore it must be made strictly compulsory for all adults within the school community. The obstacles to vaccination of children and youth below 18 years old must be overcome as soon as possible should schools reopen in high-risk areas. On the other hand, the advocacy for proper observation of the safety measures such as physical distancing, mask-wearing, and sanitation need to be reinforced.

• Improve the access and quality of online learning

Due to the uncertainty caused by the worrying trends of COVID-19 infection at the moment, it becomes urgent that the access to online learning and its quality be enhanced such as in terms of providing digital infrastructures i.e. Internet coverage and suitable devices, upskilling the teachers and students alike to be better trained and accommodated, reviewing academic workloads to be more relevant and concise to current needs and situations, and considering hybrid classes to facilitate students who have extreme struggles when it comes to learning online. The platforms of communication among school community members also need to be strengthened in its accessibility and clarity.

• Prioritize students with urgent and/or special needs

Students who will be sitting for national examinations such as Pentaksiran Tingkatan Tiga (PT3), Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) dan Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM) are concerned with the effects of school closures on their fulfilments. Therefore, the vaccination for these groups must be accelerated. Then, they must be catered to have face-to-face examinations. At the same time, students such as younger children and children with special abilities who face huge challenges when it comes to learning remotely must be facilitated to return to school.

• Engage all stakeholders effectively

It is pressing for the communication between the policymakers and the stakeholders to have clarity in terms of the instructions and action plans, as well as accessibility in terms of the mediums as not all school community members have the same levels of facilities. On the other hand, the voice of students and teachers must be empowered as co-drivers of education. to attune to their actual learning and teaching experiences and welfare. It is necessary to create platforms where the views of these stakeholders be taken into account effectively in policymaking before announcing any policies to consider the grassroots reality on the ground.

• Recover the education of the lost generation

The efforts to empower education does not stop at only reopening schools or otherwise. With the challenges and obstacles that have emerged since almost the past two years, it is important to address the lost generation harmed in their education, health, and nutrition due to multidimensional poverty, and implement strategies which utilize the leveraging of data to save those who have been left behind. Resources must be mobilized in collaboration with civil society organizations to provide stronger support systems for teachers and students such as with the help of tutors. Services for the school community should extend and be tailored specially to the needs that will preserve their overall well-being such as having more counsellors for mental health and organizing free healthy food programmes for nutritional purposes.

Conclusion

We are asking for the government and agencies in the public sector, entities in the private sector, and civil society organizations to heighten multi-stakeholder collaboration in solving the crisis. The voice of each stakeholder group must be empowered with autonomy and given duly attention at every level of policymaking in the sector. Our hope is for education during the COVID-19 pandemic which experts expect to become an endemic to be more than only the survival of the privileged but to be of equity where every child can develop their potential in a holistic and integrated manner, so as to produce balanced and harmonious human beings and societies.

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

DEWAN MUDA MALAYSIA

2021-2023 COHORT