However, the national exam results will not be the only thing waiting for them this Thursday.
Apart from academic results, the Education Ministry announced that from this year onwards, all Year Six students will also be assessed on three other non-academic components in the new Primary School Assessment Report or Pelaporan Pentaksiran Sekolah Rendah.
Education director general Datuk Dr Amin Senin said in a New Straits Times report that the three other reports are sports, physical and curriculum activities assessment, classroom assessment and psychometric assessment.
In sports, physical and co-curriculum, the students will be evaluated on their fitness level, body mass index, participation in sports, and of course, co-curricular and extra co-curricular activities.
As for classroom assessment, the ministry will look at the students’ learning methods as well as learning using various instruments.
And finally, the psychometric assessment will take into account the students’ psychological traits and evaluate their innate and acquired ability in areas like music, linguistics, naturalist leanings, mathematical logic and kinesthetic.
This is a significant step taken by the Education Ministry to do away with the exam-oriented mindset because it is about time we stop focusing solely on the number of As and more on the student’s character building.
Besides the newly introduced assessment report, the ministry will also stop comparing UPSR achievement between states and schools, and remove school average grades and subject average grades.
Although this move may come as a surprise for many parents and primary school students, but it is important that we release the pressure on schools, teachers and students to excel solely on academics.
And to all 443,794 UPSR candidates this year, all the best on your exam results tomorrow!