PUTRAJAYA: The discipline level of school students in Malaysia is still under control with only two to three per cent of the more than five million students in the country involved with disciplinary problems last year, said Deputy Education Minister, Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong.
He attributed this to the implementation of various programmes and campaigns to address the problems of indiscipline among students.
He said that last year, 111,484 students were caught for indiscipline and they comprised 72,557 or 65.08 per cent from secondary schools and 38,927 or 34.92 per cent from primary schools.
The included 17,595 students (0.32 per cent) who were involved in crime, misbehaviour (0.39 per cent or 18,346), truancy (19,545 or 0.36 per cent), pornography (3,031 or 0.06 per cent) and vandalism (5,212 or 0.1 per cent), he added.
Wee told this to reporters after chairing a meeting on addressing students’ disciplinary problems here yesterday.
He said parents should monitor their children’s movements to stop the children from getting involved in unhealthy activities, like drug addiction, truancy and other disciplinary problems.
On the meeting, Wee said they discussed programmes which would be implemented to address discipline problems among students next year, like courses on law and enforcement for school disciplinary teachers.
Asked whether closed-circuit television cameras would be installed in schools to monitor students’ discipline, Wee said the situation now had not reached a stage where installation of such a gadget was necessary.
However, he said, the schools and the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) could take the initiative to do so. — Bernama