Education Ministry orders spot checks on schools to curb bullying
Education director-general Dr Mohd Azam Ahmad stated that officials must also visit boarding schools at night to observe student living conditions.
'We might visit schools unexpectedly to assess the environment and dormitories,' he told reporters after the MADANI Teachers Appreciation Event.
School principals have been instructed to lead anti-bullying chants before and after sessions to reinforce student awareness.
The ministry plans to enhance school security, including more CCTV cameras and dormitory wardens.
Dr Mohd Azam urged teachers, PTAs, and communities to collaborate in ensuring student safety, particularly at night. - Bernama
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Barnama
4 hours ago
- Barnama
Man Charged With 52 Sexual Offences Against Daughter In Melaka
MELAKA, Aug 12 (Bernama) -- An electrical goods technician was charged in the Ayer Keroh Sessions Court here today with 52 counts of committing incest, physical sexual assault and recording pornographic videos of his biological daughter since May. According to the charges, the 41-year-old man is accused of committing the offences at a house in Taman Tambak Paya Harmoni, Melaka Tengah, against his 18-year-old daughter between May 12 and Aug 6. When the charges were read before Judge Haderiah Siri, the accused pleaded not guilty to all counts. Of the total charges, 17 were framed under Section 376B of the Penal Code for committing incest, which carries imprisonment of not less than 10 years and up to 30 years, and whipping, if convicted. For the other 34 charges, the accused was charged under Sections 14(b) and 14(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act (SOACA) 2017, read together with Section 16(1) of the same Act. The offences under those sections carry a penalty of imprisonment of up to 20 years and whipping, while Section 16(1) of SOACA 2017 provides for imprisonment not exceeding five years and a minimum of two strokes of the cane. One charge was also brought under Section 7 of SOACA 2017 for producing child pornography by recording two images of his daughter naked in a bathroom at the same location on July 9. If convicted, the accused faces imprisonment of up to 20 years and not less than five strokes of the cane. The prosecution, led by Muhamad Ehsan Nasarudin, proposed bail of RM20,000 for each charge with additional conditions including prohibition on contacting the victim and witnesses, reporting to the nearest police station every two weeks and surrendering his passport to the court.
The Star
6 hours ago
- The Star
Education Ministry to work with stakeholders to clarify guidelines on handling bullying
KUALA LUMPUR: The Education Ministry will conduct engagement sessions with all stakeholders to explain the current guidelines for handling bullying offences, says Minister Fadhlina Sidek ( pic ). She said the move was in response to one of the four demands in the #JusticeForZara memorandum submitted to the ministry by a group of student activists here on Tuesday (Aug 12). "The ministry is also open to views and suggestions to improve the existing guidelines," she said in a Facebook post. On the demand for a comprehensive reform of the national education system, particularly in relation to bullying issues, Fadhlina said the ministry had announced several important measures to enhance safety in all educational institutions under its purview. "This includes conducting safety audits, improving the bullying complaint system, setting up a safety reform committee, taking stern action such as suspending and expelling students involved in bullying, and ensuring psychosocial support aspects are strengthened at every level," she said. On the demand to make mandatory and periodic training for all teachers, administrators and wardens on crisis intervention, student emotional management and professional procedures in handling bullying complaints, Fadhlina said training aspects would continue to be enhanced to ensure the readiness of school administrators, teachers and wardens. She also said that all educational institutions under the ministry's purview must comply with the guidelines for tackling bullying offences. Regarding the demand for the Education Ministry to provide an open explanation to the public about the case of the late Zara Qairina Mahathir, she said the ministry would fully cooperate with the police investigation, and updates on the case would be communicated periodically by the police. "The Education Ministry welcomes the police's initiative to set up a special task force to handle the case involving the late Zara Qairina," said Fadhlina, who met with the representatives of the student activists in Parliament to further discuss all concerns raised in the memorandum. - Bernama
The Star
10 hours ago
- The Star
Place social workers in school to address disciplinary issues, Education Ministry told
KOTA KINABALU: It is time for the Education Ministry to place social workers in schools to address disciplinary issues amongst students, said a social works specialist. Prof Dr Peter Voo of the Psychology and Social Works Faculty in Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) said the Education Ministry must now put more emphasis on issues such as bullying, truant and disrespect towards teachers. 'It is important to place social workers in schools at this crucial time because the job of educators has become so much more challenging and complicated,' he said. Voo said there were many processes to go through involving teachers, parents, community and the government in educating children. His suggestion comes after the death of 13-year-old Zara Qairina Mahathir, who was believed to have fallen from the third floor of her school hostel building in Papar. 'Social workers in schools are tasked with roles of advocating, preventing, recovering and connecting. 'Advocating the rights of students, especially vulnerable groups such as the poor, orphans, and the disabled can help prevent social ills from becoming a crisis.' he said. He said it can also help the affected students recover from behavioral or traumatic issues, with social workers acting as the bridge between the students, their school, families and agencies involved. Voo said in many countries including the United States, Canada, Australia, United Kingdom and Singapore, social workers are part of the schools' support system and often are part of the teachers or counselors group. He said Malaysian schools only have counselling teachers or guidance counsellors who are also often tied to extracurricular academic duties. 'This is different from social workers who are 100% focused on the social and emotional issues of students. 'These are trained professionals in this field of work including case management and community intervention,' he said. Voo said the presence of a dedicated social worker could ease the workload of teachers or guidance counselors in schools. 'Social workers can properly support these students needing the kind of emotional, psychological and mental support and intervention,' he said. He said for UMS, their social works programme had created over 900 graduates since 2004, many of whom are now serving in government hospitals and non-governmental organisations as social workers. Voo added that UMS is "ready to work with the government" in terms of human capital preparations and training towards this cause.
