The Education Department has identified 8,829 non-option teachers across Sarawak. ― Malay Mail photo
KUCHING (June 30): The state Education Department has identified 8,829 non-option teachers across Sarawak, said Education, Science and Technological Research Minister Datuk Michael Manyin Jawong.
The non-option teachers are teaching Science (2,995), Mathematics (3,992), and English (1,842).
Manyin explained that a non-option teacher is one who is, for example, trained to teach Bahasa Melayu but asked to teach Mathematics or Science due to the unavailability of Mathematics or Science teachers in that school.
“Currently we are addressing this issue with the RM6 million allocation given by the state for re-skilling and upskilling of these non-option teachers,” he said in a statement today.
Manyin said the initiative conducted with the Education Department and local teacher education institutes (IPGM) is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
On Sarawak’s 90:10 policy for teachers, where 90 per cent of teachers in the state must be Sarawakian, he said it seeks to address the high turnover of teachers, especially in rural schools.
He pointed out that many teachers, especially non-Sarawakians, found it hard to adjust to rural life in the state.
Manyin said Sarawak still maintained 10 per cent non-Sarawakian teachers to have a mix.
“This will give teachers from other states the opportunity to come to Sarawak, understand our cultures and customs better, and subsequently strengthen integration in our country,” he said.
“It will also allow our students the opportunity to be taught by experienced teachers from the other states. At the same time, we also need to expose our Sarawakian teachers to teach in other states in order to gain more experience both in teaching and cultural understanding outside Sarawak and become more efficient and competent.”
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As of April 2021, Sarawak was short of 3,385 teachers — 1,545 in secondary schools and 1,840 in primary schools.
Manyin said his ministry, established in May 2017, seeks to assist and complement the Ministry of Education (MoE) in addressing education issues in Sarawak by working closely with the Education Department and other related agencies.
Since its inception, his ministry and the department had looked at the overall performance trend of Sarawak’s students in public examinations, which was found to be unsatisfactory.
He said the most glaring factor was the poor physical condition of schools, where 1,020 were categorised as dilapidated and from which 415 were critically dilapidated.
The other factors were high turnover of teachers, especially in rural schools, and mismatch of subject options.
In addressing dilapidated schools, Manyin said RM1 billion had been allocated for this in contra with Sarawak’s soft loan from the federal government.
A total 148 schools covered under this initiative are currently under various stages of implementation.
In addition, the Sarawak government has already repaired 66 rural schools under the Rural Transformation Initiative (RTI) at a cost of RM21 million.
Under Projek Rakyat (People’s Project), four schools are being improved — SK Ulu Segan (RM28.5 million), SK Maludam (RM35.765 million), SK Merpati Jepang (RM12,75 million), and SK Kampung Penasu, Daro (RM35 million).
Sarawak also approved RM3 million for the construction of a new Integrated Special Education Programme (PPKI) block at SMK Matang.
Manyin added Sarawak has also approved an allocation of RM160 million for the repairs and upgrading of 60 dilapidated schools in the northern region.