KUALA LUMPUR: The government has withdrawn its plan to introduce a screening tool for six-year-old children entering Year One, removing the diagnostic test as a prerequisite for early enrolment.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the decision was made to prevent potential discrimination and negative psychological effects on young children.
“But I want to stress this: the initial proposal was good because it included an assessment system before a child entered school.
“However, it was later considered that it could become discriminatory.
“It could lead to a situation where some children are allowed into Year One while others are sent back to preschool—labelling them as ineligible or less intelligent. This could have a lasting psychological impact,” he said during Prime Minister’s Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Anwar said that after a review, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek recommended that the diagnostic test be abolished to simplify the process.
“Based on the minister’s recommendation, I agreed that it should be scrapped,” he added.
He said this in response to Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman’s (MUDA-Muar) suggestion for the government to re-evaluate the need for a screening test.
Last week, Anwar launched the National Education Development Plan 2026–2035, which introduced a policy allowing parents to enrol their children in school at the age of six, a year earlier than the current entry age of seven.
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