Answer for Oral Question PL116

QUESTION

Yang Berhormat Pengiran Haji Isa bin Pengiran Haji Aliuddin

YANG BERHORMAT PENGIRAN HAJI ISA BIN PENGIRAN HAJI ALIUDDIN requested the MINISTER OF EDUCATION to state whether the ministry plans to reintroduce subjects in life skills such as home science, woodwork and agriculture at the secondary or primary level.

ANSWER

Yang Berhormat Menteri Pendidikan

The Ministry of Education continuously ensures that the school curriculum is aligned with the requirements of 21st-century skills and current needs. The concept of life skills subjects such as home science, woodwork, and agriculture has essentially not been abolished, but has been integrated, rebranded and enhanced in its implementation under the Sistem Pendidikan Negara Abad Ke-21 (SPN21) to make it more holistic and relevant.

At the lower secondary level (Years 7 and 8), elements of woodwork and carpentry skills have been incorporated into subjects such as Design and Technology (D&T) and Business, Art and Technology (BAT). Through these subjects, students are exposed to the fundamentals of carpentry, design innovation, the proper use of tools and materials technology.

For the home science element, the ministry offers elective subjects at the upper secondary level (Years 9 to 11), such as Food and Nutrition, which focuses on food management, nutritional science and cooking recipes. In addition, vocational education pathways are also offered through BTEC programmes (for example, BTEC Hospitality and BTEC Business), which emphasise practical training and hands-on skills related to life skills and employability.

In the field of agriculture (agriculture), this subject is still offered in secondary schools, and the strengthening of these skills is widely implemented through co-curricular initiatives and education based on Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics (S.T.E.A.M). Through the Pusat Kerjasama Sains, Teknologi dan Alam Sekitar (Pusat STEP), the ministry is actively implementing the Green School Gardening (GSG) programme, whereby schools are provided with hydroponic system infrastructure to train students in the fundamentals of modern gardening and sustainable cultivation. The club system in secondary and primary schools also actively promotes Agriculture, Gardening and Green Initiatives clubs under the co-curricular creativity component. These skills are also taught to Pra-Vokasional students and students with special needs in secondary schools to develop their independent living skills and consequently enhance their employability upon completing their schooling.

The ministry’s current plan is to continue empowering and expanding these life skills elements through the existing curriculum, which has been modernised, and S.T.E.A.M.-based initiatives, in line with future skills requirements, rather than reintroducing these subjects within their classical structure.