Academics Back Study On UPSR, PT3 Revival, Suggest Enhancements

By Mohd Khairi Idham Amran

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 10 (Bernama) -- The Education Ministry’s move to study the need to revive the Pentaksiran Tingkatan Tiga (PT3) and the Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) examinations has received positive feedback from academics, who also suggested several improvements.

Senior lecturer at the Faculty of Educational Sciences and Technology, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Dr Yap Soon Li said that if the National Education Advisory Council (MPPK) recommends reintroducing both examinations, it should not be seen as a step backwards, but as a systematic realignment within the national education assessment landscape.

“In many international education systems, assessment reform is cyclical, not linear. The key issue is not whether the centralised exams are considered old or new, but how their functions are redesigned to support meaningful learning,” he told Bernama today.

He noted that UPSR and PT3 previously served as national benchmarks to monitor students’ mastery of basic literacy, numeracy and academic readiness. However, the main weakness lay in an overly exam-oriented approach, which encouraged ‘teaching to the test’ and excessive stress.

He added that if reintroduced, UPSR and PT3 should combine summative assessment for system monitoring with formative assessment to support continuous student development.

Yap also stressed that exam questions should move away from recall-based formats towards Higher-Order Thinking Skills (HOTS), reasoning, and the application of knowledge in real-world contexts, in line with international frameworks such as the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), which emphasises the transfer of learning.

He said examination results should not constitute high-stakes, single-point judgements, but should be integrated with school-based assessment data to provide a more holistic evaluation of students.

“Centralised examinations should function as diagnostic tools for the system, not as the sole determinant of student success,” he said, highlighting the need to strengthen assessment literacy among teachers.

Without systematic training for teachers to interpret exam results and use them to improve teaching, any assessment reform will fail at the implementation stage, he added.

He also suggested the ethical use of technology and data analytics to identify student weaknesses, learning gaps, targeted support, and focused interventions.

“The reintroduction of UPSR and PT3 is only meaningful if accompanied by a paradigm shift, moving beyond assessment of learning alone, and integrating ‘assessment for and as learning’ in a balanced manner, in line with the objectives of the latest Malaysian Education Development Plan and 21st-century education demands,” he said.

Meanwhile, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Malaysian Inclusive Development and Advancement Institute (MINDA) deputy director Dr Anuar Ahmad said the reintroduction of UPSR and PT3 is appropriate for measuring students’ actual achievement at each schooling level and ensuring the effectiveness of the national education system.

“At the primary school level, UPSR served as a checkpoint to assess children’s learning outcomes. PT3 then evaluated achievement at lower secondary level, followed by SPM at upper secondary,” he said.

He noted that the current school-based assessment system faces constraints, including large class sizes, which make effective assessment challenging.

However, Anuar cautioned the ministry against repeating past mistakes where UPSR and PT3 became platforms for competition between students and schools, negatively affecting students’ emotional and mental well-being.

He said UPSR and PT3 should serve as tools to identify students’ achievement levels after a period of learning, allowing for early support and interventions, particularly for those struggling with reading, writing and numeracy skills, before progressing to the next education level.

“The goal is not to find out who the smartest students are. UPSR and PT3 aim to measure each student’s ability according to their level or potential,” he said.

He added that there is no need for the ministry to announce the best-performing schools or brand excellence solely based on exam results.

Yesterday, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said the ministry has activated the MPPK to study the need to revive UPSR and PT3.

UPSR was abolished in 2021, followed by PT3 in 2022, with both replaced by school-based assessment.

-- BERNAMA