The SPM oral question has been widely shared on social media. — Screengrab from WhatsApp
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 13 — Kulai MP Teo Nie Ching wants the Education Ministry to clarify if SPM students were really asked about their dream wedding as an oral examination question in the 2021 school leaving certificate.
The former deputy education minister said the matter was widely shared on social media recently and needed to be made clear.
“Is it true SPM candidates were asked ‘what’s your dream wedding’?
“Such a question is inappropriate and should not be given to Form 5 students who are only 17 years old,” she said in a statement today.
The Opposition lawmaker said that at such an age, the teenagers had more priorities than marriage, listing academic credentials and their families’ financial ability to send them for further studies as examples.
“I urge the Education Ministry to confirm if this question was really asked in the SPM oral question, and if true, apologise to all Form 5 students who had to answer such a question as well as to their parents,” she added.
Teo did not indicate the examination subject for the oral question but social media users across several platforms, including Facebook, Twitter and Tik Tok, shared that it happened during the Bahasa Melayu oral examination last week.
The issue has stirred debate on social media with many Malaysians questioning the logic in such a question posed to students.
Critics, including Parent Action Group for Education president Datin Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim told The New Straits Times that the question was unsuitable due to the prevalence of child marriages in Malaysia as well as a concerning trend for youths to enter marriage soon after leaving school.
“Oral is about articulation and you can say why not, but I think questions should be on more relatable subjects. There is child marriage; they could have asked what’s the right marriageable age instead, climate change, recycling, public transport, even Undi18 which directly affects them as some of them would become the first batch of 18-year-olds to vote in the Johor state election,” she was quoted as saying in a February 11 NST report.
Others, like Twitter user syed bidin al [email protected] have suggested that critics should not underestimate the critical thinking levels of today’s youths.
“Dont underestimate student spm nowadays. They all 18 and eligible to be a leader under undi18. What kind of leader if tanya pasal perkahwinan jadi tak sensible. Tak caya tanya Syed Saddiq,” he tweeted on February 10 in reply to another Twitter user.
Some more, like batrisyia7, tweeted that the three minutes given for the oral examination was insufficient for a proper reply.
The SPM oral examination began on February 8 while the written examination will begin on March 2 until March 29.