DENGKIL: There is no need to hold a second session of the 2024 Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination as the attendance of candidates for the Malay language oral test was very encouraging.
Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said the overall attendance was 99 per cent as of yesterday, indicating the smooth running of Ops Payung for rescue purposes and ensuring that examination candidates could attend despite being affected by floods.
“Why do we need a second session when we can only have one session? So yesterday I stressed in the Dewan Rakyat that our preparations for facing this flood are under Ops Payung.
“We activate Ops Payung every year when faced with flood disaster issues and it is the full strength of the government agency machinery to implement all guidelines during floods,“ she said.
She told the media after the groundbreaking ceremony for two public primary schools, namely Sekolah Kebangsaan and Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina, in Bandar Gamuda Cove, here today.
Also present were Deputy Minister of Education Wong Kah Woh and Gamuda chairman Tan Sri Ambrin Buang.
Fadhlina said the Ministry of Education (MOE) was satisfied with the implementation of the SPM which entered its third day after the evacuation and emotional recovery phase.
“On the third day, our candidates faced the oral exam and it went very well. So our next preparation is for the second wave (of floods) next week, so we will focus on that,“ she said.
She said preparations will continue to be focused on the Science Practical Test and the English Oral Test.
Meanwhile, Fadhlina said the Ministry of Education is also identifying candidates who are unable to attend the Malay Oral Test so that they can take the test until tomorrow (December 5).
“So there is no question of a second session because we can arrange it so far with the situation and the capabilities of our officers and agencies to ensure that everything runs smoothly,“ she said.
For the record, a total of 402,956 candidates registered to sit for the SPM 2024 examination.
The Malay Oral Test starts from December 2 until Thursday, while the Science Practical Test starts from December 9, 10 and 12.
This is followed by the English Oral Test on December 16,17,18, and 19, BM Listening Test (December 31) and English Listening Test (December 31).
The written exam will be held from January 2 to February 6, 2025.
