The Ministry of Education Malaysia (MOE) has announced 12 major initiatives in conjunction with Teachers’ Day, focusing on the welfare and professional development of educators, including the abolition of the manual co-curricular recording system to reduce teachers’ workload.
Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said the move to remove manual recording is part of the ministry’s ongoing efforts to strengthen the teaching profession and improve school management efficiency.
She said schools will be given autonomy to manage record-keeping before students’ co-curricular information is uploaded into the Physical Activity, Sports and Co-Curriculum Assessment System (PAJSK).
“Additionally, I have also instructed that the PAJSK system be integrated with the Student Database Application System (APDM) to ensure a more systematic and efficient process.
“Removing one system means teachers can focus more on classrooms and students,” she said during her speech at the 55th National-Level Teachers’ Day Celebration at the Casuarina@Meru Convention Centre.
The event was officiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and attended by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad.
Fadhlina also announced that the Google Certified Educator (GCE) Level 1 and Level 2 certification programmes will continue to be offered free of charge to all teachers to strengthen digital literacy.
She said Malaysia is currently recognised as the world leader in the number of certified Google educators, with 60,000 Level 1 holders and 33,000 Level 2 holders.
“The cost per teacher is RM40 for Level 1 and RM100 for Level 2, and this is fully covered by the government to ensure teachers remain technologically competent,” she said.
Among other initiatives, she said the ministry is introducing special Federal Training Awards (HLP) for teachers in rural and hardship schools, including hospital schools, floating schools, and remote P1, P2 and P3 areas.
Federal Teaching Scholarships will also be expanded to school leaders such as headmasters, principals and senior assistants to pursue postgraduate studies.
To strengthen digital learning, the ministry introduced the Network Offline Digital Environment (NODE) project, allowing teaching and learning to continue even without internet access, especially in rural areas.
RM1 million has been allocated through the Yayasan Guru Tun Hussein Onn to support the implementation of the project.
At the same time, the government has allocated RM169 million for devices to all schools in preparation for the new curriculum rollout in 2027.
On teacher welfare, an additional RM100 million has been allocated for classroom maintenance, bringing the total to RM200 million, including improvements such as air-conditioning and other facilities.
“We want teachers’ well-being to be truly reflected in a comfortable and conducive working environment,” she said.
Another RM50 million has been allocated for the maintenance of teachers’ quarters to ensure safety and living conditions remain well maintained.
In early childhood education, the ministry is implementing the PAKAT programme at preschool level to encourage reading culture through collaboration between teachers and parents.
RM10.5 million has been allocated for additional reading materials for 10,515 preschool classes nationwide.
An additional RM122.4 million has been channelled directly to schools for STEM and TVET programmes, allowing teachers to conduct more practical learning activities.
As a token of appreciation, the Yayasan Guru Tun Hussein Onn will also provide RM1,000 to teachers whose children score 10A in the 2025 SPM examination.
To help ease cost-of-living pressures, the ministry announced a 50% reduction in school canteen rental for the first six months to help operators maintain affordable and quality food prices.
This year’s Teachers’ Day theme is “Guru Bitara Nadi Negara”, highlighting teachers as the backbone of the nation in shaping quality human capital for social stability and economic development.
