Page 405 - Westport Guide To Malaysia

THE GUIDE TO MALAYSIA 397
Science education prioritises hands-on experience. This school observatory in Penang is a perfect example.
various types of disability. Education is provided
even in the remotest areas, with primary schools accessible to every community in the country. In the effort of providing quality education for all, educational assistance is provided by the Ministry of Education for all students, especially those from
low income families. Malaysia is also home to a variety of well-regarded
international schools, which can be found in or near major urban centers. They mostly accept day students, and some also provide boarding facilities. The majority use English as the medium of instruction, although there are also Arabic, French, German, Japanese and Korean language international schools in Kuala Lumpur.
Tertiary
The Ministry of Higher Education’s vision is to deliver high quality tertiary education to produce excellent individuals for
a prosperous nation,
and based on current achievements they appear to be on target. The country has 20 public universities, of which five are research- based universities with at least 32% postgraduate enrolment. These are supplemented by 36 polytechnics and 104 community colleges, which underline the
school education, and government- supported kindergartens and pre- schools can be found in every urban and suburban area in Malaysia, as well as in the majority of rural villages. The long-term objective is to provide quality pre- school education for every community in the country.
In the private sector, parents have a wide
choice of early education opportunities. These range from kindergartens and pre-schools run by religious groups, especially those attached to mosques, temples and churches,
to international early education franchises and even popular alternative teaching methods such as Montessori pre-schools.
Primary and Secondary
Primary education is compulsory from Year One to Year Six and education
is provided free of charge in government and government–aided schools. Primary education begins at age 6+ and continues
for 6 years, with children entering secondary school at the age of 12+, where they continue for 5 years until they sit for the Sijil Pelajaran Malayisa (SPM) or Malaysia Certificate
of Education (MCE), equivalent to the GCSE ‘O’- Level. The main medium
of instruction in all schools in the National Education System which consists
of government schools, government-aided schools and private schools is the Malay language except
for Chinese and Tamil vernacular schools.
Students with special needs (SEN) can enroll in government schools which provide inclusive education programmes or in special education schools according to the