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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

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CONTENTS

Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Learning Theories
Chapter 3: Instructional Design & Instructional Theories
Chapter 4: E-Learning Framework
Chapter 5: Technology Design
Chapter 6: Content Design
Chapter 7: Learning Design
Chapter 8: Audiovisual & Digital Technologies in the Classroom
Chapter 9: Technology Integration in Schools
Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

Upon completion of this chapter, you should be able to:

 Explain the role of the Educational Technology Division, Ministry of Education

Malaysia
 Identify the role of the School Resource Centre (Pusat Sumber Sekolah)
 Discuss the function of the State Educational Resource Centre (Pusat Sumber
Pendidikan Negeri)
 Describe the roles and responsibilities of the Teacher Activity Centre (Pusat
Kegiatan Guru)

CHAPTER OVERVIEW

10.1 Preamble
10.2 Educational Technology 10.5 EduWebTV
Division, MOE
10.3 State Educational Resource Key Terms
Centre References
10.4 Teacher Activity Centre
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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

10.1 PREAMBLE

This chapter discusses the policies and institutions that have been established
by the Ministry of Education Malaysia in encouraging the use of technology by
teachers in primary and secondary schools.

10.2 EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY DIVISION (Bahagian

Teknologi Pendidikan - BTP)

Prior to 1972, there were three units were responsible for providing
educational technology services to school: Audio Visual Unit, Schools Radio service
and Educational Television. These three services were integrated into one unit called
the Educational Media Service which later was known as the Education Technology
Division (Bahagian Teknologi Pendidikan).
The vision of the Division is to “lead in the transformation of education
through educational technology” and its mission is “human capacity building and
enhancement of the quality of instructional management through enculturation of
innovation in educational technology. The OBJECTIVES of the Educational
Technology Division (BTP) is to:

 Enculturate the use of ICT in education to enhance the quality of teaching

and learning, the effectiveness of school management & administration, and
the competencies of teachers.
 Provide services to teachers and students in the use of technology in
education
 Provide new alternatives in educational technology appropriate for use by
teachers and students
 Develop quality educational technology materials and provide greater access
to teachers and students
 Enhance expertise in management and facilities of resource centres to
support improvement in teaching and learning

Based on these objectives, the FUNCTION of the Educational Technology Division

is to:

 Plan, monitor, manage and evaluate the needs of the educational technology
policy
 Plan, monitor, coordinate and evaluate implementation and effectiveness of
the smart school concept
 Plan, prepare and publish teaching-learning materials in various media
 Plan, manage and coordinate the information and educational technology
literacy programme as well as a reference and documentation centre for the
state resource centres, school resource centres and teacher activity centres.
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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

 Disseminate published teaching and learning materials through the various

media of print and electronic media..
 Monitor and evaluate the use of educational technology in teaching and
learning and management of the school, and
 Provide expert services and advice in an effort to enhance innovation and
creativity in using educational technology in school

[source: Bahagain Teknologi Pendidikan, Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia.

http://www.moe.edu.my/btp/]

The Educational Technology Division (BTP) consists of the following sectors:

 Engineering Sector

This sector is responsible in providing technical services in the production of

programmes by the Educational Broadcasting Sector and other sectors. This
sector is responsible for maintenance and safety of the Educational
Technology Division building.

 Educational Broadcasting Sector

This sector is responsible for the production of programmes for Educational

TV which was introduced in 1972 in an effort to reduce the gap between rural
and urban schools. Until 1999, Educational TV was broadcasted through RTM
(Radio & Television Malaysia). Between 2000 until 2006, Educational TV
was broadcasted through ASTRO and from 2007-2008, it was taken over by
TV9. However, from March, 2008, Educational TV stopped broadcasting
through terrestrial stations and instead was broadcasted through the internet
via the web portal eduwebtc.com (discussed in detail later)

 Strategic Management Sector

This sector was formerly known as the Policy Sector is responsible for
planning and coordinating activities by the Division and its branches. Its main
task is to ensure that the activities of the Division are aligned with the national
educational policy.

 Capacity Building and Professionalism Sector

This sector is responsible in the planning and implementation of courses for

staff of the Division and its branches. It works with the Department of Teacher
Education in the design and conduct of courses for education officers, teacher
and non-teaching staff.
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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

 Educational Technology Literacy Sector

This sector is responsible for planning and coordination of literacy

programmes in educational technology and evaluation of self-access centres in
schools. It is also responsible for the gallery and archive of the Division.

 Administration & Management Sector

This sector was established in 2009 and is responsible for the services and
administration of the Division and its branches.

 Smart School Sector

This sector is responsible for implementation of the smart school concept.

Focus is the enhancement of teaching and learning and management through
use of ICT in schools. The sector is also responsible for training teachers and
school administrators in the adoption of ICT in teaching and administration;
and getting students to be self-directed learners

 Learning Resource Sector

This sector is responsible for the enculturation of technology in schools,

focusing on promotion of innovative use of technology in teaching and
learning. It coordinates and serves as the secretariat for the development of
resources in the resources centres at the state and district levels; it develops
standards for such centres, advices on use of resources and organises
exhibitions.

 Management of Educational Application Sector

This sector is responsible for the management, monitoring and evaluation of

the School Management System and the Learning Management System for
schools. It provides technical advice on the development and management of
web portals for schools, teacher activity centres, state resource centres and the
Division. It also develops standards and safety guidelines for the Division,
resources centres and schools.

 Information & Communication Technology in Education Sector

This sector is responsible for the planning, management and maintenance of

ICT equipment in schools, complaints related to ICT matters, and advice on
ICT equipment.
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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

10. 1 LEARNING ACTIVITY

a) What is the purpose for the establishment of the
Educational Technology Division, MOE?
b) What the Division’s role?
c) Check out the website of the Educational Technology
Division and list some of its activities in promoting ICT
in schools.

10.3 STATE EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY CENTRE

(Pusat Sumber Pendidikan Negeri)

In the Third Malaysia Plan (1976-1980), allocation was made for the
establishment of 4 State Education Technology Centres in Kedah, Kelantan, Pahang
and Terengganu with the aims of enhancing the quality of education in these states.
Each Centre was to organise in-service programmes for teachers and school
administrators. Following which another 10 State Education Technology Centres was
established in the other states by 1995 with the aims of encouraging teachers to
intensify the use of teaching-learning aids in the classroom.

The rationale for the establishment of these Centres was to decentralise the function
of the Educational Technology Division focusing on training, equipment, educational
media and services. The main function of the Centres was to:
 Enable action to be taken promptly appropriate to the local area
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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

 Encourage teachers to be creative and innovative in the solution of teaching-

learning problems
 Assist in the solution of teaching-learning problems according to the
individual needs of learners

As these centres were near several schools, it was able to provide more personalised
services to teachers when it is most needed.

What Services are Available for Teachers?

The Centre provided the following services to teachers:

 Expert Advice: advice on the purchase of equipment, media material,
publications and the establishment of resource centres (such as School
Resource Centre & Teacher Activity Centres).
 Library & Media: Makes available print materials (such as books, magazines
and others), digital media (such as CDs, slides, videos, audio & others).
 Loan of Learning Materials: Materials can be loaned to teachers such as
projectors, slides, camera, laptops, cassettes, DVDs and others.
 Maintenance: Services for the maintenance of equipment.
 Photography: Facilities for photography, printing and publishing
 Recording: Facilities for audio and vide recording as well as editing tools and
technologies.
 Publishing & Printing: Printing for teaching and learning
 Graphic: Tools for graphic such as photoshop.
 Instructional Design: Assist teachers in instructional design & development;
production of educational media
 In-service Courses: Various types of short courses are conducted according
to the needs of teachers (Yusup Hashim & Razmah Man, 2006).

10.4 TEACHER ACTIVITY CENTRE (Pusat Kegiatan Guru)

Evolution of the Teacher Activity Centre:

 In 1978 it was called the “Local Resource Centre” (Pusat Sumber Tempatan)
in 302 schools
 Later in 1981 it was called “District Media Centre” (Pusat Media Daerah)
 Later in 1986 it was called “District Education Resource Centre” (Pusat
Sumber Pendidikan Daerah)..
 Each centre were required to serve 15-20 schools. The main aim of the centre
is to narrow the gap between rural and urban school by providing services and
equipment (such as development of low cost teaching-learning materials).
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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

The aim of the Centres was to familiarise teachers in the rural areas with
educational technology.
 In 1990 was renamed to “Teacher Activity Centre” (Pusat Kegiatan Guru)

Teacher Activity Centre

Teacher Activity Centre (Pusat Kegiatan Guru) was officially established by the
Ministry of Education, according to the circular (BTP) 8804/23 Jilid 1 (54) dated
14/8/1990. It is to be unit established under the State Education Resource Centre
(Pusat Sumber Pendidikan Negeri) or now known as the State Educational
Technology Division (Bahagian Teknologi Pendidikan Negeri) under the auspices of
the Educational Technology Division, Ministry of Education. It aims to provide
support and training to teachers in the use of education technology in teaching and
learning. Each Teacher Activity Centre is to several schools in the surrounding area. .
Therefore, usually there is more than a PKG in one area.
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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

The following are some of the FUNCTIONS of the Teacher Activity Centre:

Function 1: Monitoring Service To Help Schools And About Use of Educational

Technology and Media

 To monitor and improve

o School Resource Centre Development Programme
o Promoting Reading
o Information Literacy Program

 Monitor the use and effectiveness of various teaching and learning media

o Existing materials and equipment

o Materials Innovation
o Implementation of the Smart School

 Monitor the installation and implementation of the School Access Centre

 Monitoring the implementation of the SchoolNet
 Monitoring the school computer Lab
 Promote reading and literacy programmes (LINUS)
 Monitor the activities of PPSMI
 Conduct materials management workshop
 Provide guidance and advice to the library media teacher
 Report to the State Educational Technology Division
 Encourage educational technology R&D
 Advice on the school management system
 Advice on computer security
 Collect and reporting on feedback and complaints on products and services from
schools

10.2 LEARNING ACTIVITY

a) Briefly list purpose of establishing Teacher Activity
Centres.
b) What are the objectives of the Teacher Activity Centres?
c) Find out the nearest Teacher Activity Centre to your
school. Check out the services provided and to what
extent have you used the services.
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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

10.5 EDUWEBTV

The Malaysian Ministry of Education has implemented the EDUWEBTV

programme since March 2008. It is a vide o-based interactive educational portal that
aims at developing the teaching and learning of the nation through creative
information and communication technology (ICT). The mission of EDUWEBTV is in
line with the Education Development Master Plan 2006-2010. It is recognised as one
of the key efforts by the ministry to enhance school’s teaching and learning processes,
regardless of geographical locations. There are eight channels in the EDUWEBTV
portal, namely,

 news (berita),
 academic (akademik),
 documentary (rencana),
 interview (wawancara),
 curriculum (kurikulum),
 interactive (interaktif),
 live (siaran langsung) and
 guidance (panduan).

These channels can be divided into non-instructional and instructional

channels. Non-instructional channels include news, academic, documentary,
interview, live and guidance channels while instructional channels were made up of
curriculum and interactive channels. The news channel displays daily news relevant to
the educational communities while the academic channel displays knowledge sharing
on best practices of teaching and learning as well as education management.
Through the documentary channel, schools with outstanding academic and co-
curriculum achievements as well as best practices can be highlighted and emulated by
other schools in the country. The interview channel features interviews with the
ministry personalities or those linked to education field on current issues. Among
those who have been interviewed were the Education Ministry’s Secretary General
and Director General, heads of the ministry’s departments and agencies, as well as
school principles (EDUWEBTV, 2009).
The last two non-instructional channels are live and guidance channels. The
former displays live-broadcast of ministry’s events via the internet and the latter
provides guidelines for teachers, students, and parents in aspect of education. The
curriculum and interactive channels, on the other hand, are designed specifically for
instructional purposes. The curriculum channel has videos of teaching and learning
materials produced by the Educational Technology Division in the Ministry of
Education. These materials are developed based on the national school curriculum.
The subjects covered English Language, Malay Language, Physics, Geography,
Living Skills, Mathematics, Islamic Education, and so on (Melissa Ng Lee Yen
Abdullah, Fong Soon Fook & Ong Saw Lan, 2010. p 101)
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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

The interactive channel consists of learning videos specially designed for

different school subjects. These videos can be used in classrooms by teachers as part
of the teaching and learning process or at home by pupils as homework and revision
(EDUWEBTV, 2009). At the lower secondary level, it covers subjects like Science,
Malay Language, English Language, Geography and History. For the upper secondary
level, the channel encompasses videos in Mathematics, Malay Language, English
Language and History. Teachers who have registered themselves on EDUWEBTV are
able to download the video clips from the various channels, edit them, and
subsequently upload them onto their playlists, which are also hosted by the portal to
be used in their lessons. Students can also download these videos for self-learning
purposes.
A study by Melissa Ng Lee Yen Abdullah, Fong Soon Fook & Ong Saw Lan.
(2010), on EDUWEBTV revealed that the instructional videos in EDUWEBTV have
great potentials to be utilized as an effective teaching and learning tool in schools.
Nevertheless, the videos must constantly undergo evaluation, modification, and
improvement to keep abreast with the current knowledge, capabilities and demands of
learners as well as the development in ICT. With such steps taken, EDUWEBTV will
be able to meet the demand as a resource that is aligned to Malaysian and global
standards, and establish itself as a major contributor in enhancing the quality of
teaching and learning in Malaysian schools, regardless of geographical locations as
envisages by the Ministry of Education.

10.3 LEARNING ACTIVITY

a) Discuss the feature of the EduWebTV
b) Have you used the EduWebTV in your classroom?
c) How have you used it? If not, why?
d) Check the website and describe the merits of the
video clips for the subject you teach.
http://eduwebtv.com/v2/home/

KEY TERMS

Teacher activity centre Smart school

State education resource centre SchoolNet
Educational technology division EduWebTV
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Chapter 10: Technology in Malaysian Schools

REFERENCES

Anderson, C. (2006, July). People power: Blogs, user reviews, photo-sharing – the
peer production era has arrived. Wired, 132.

EDUWEBTV: The official WebTV of the Ministry of Education Malaysia, Star

Special, 16 June, 2009.

Melissa Ng Lee Yen Abdullah, Fong Soon Fook & Ong Saw Lan. (2010). An
Evaluation of Instructional Videos in EDUWEBTV: Technical Qualities, Pedagogical
Aspects, Engagement and Perceived Impact on Learning. Malaysian Journal of
Educational Technology. Volume 10, Number 2.

Yusup Hashim & Razman Man (2006). Teknologi Instructional: Teori dan Aplikasi.
Syarikat Perintis: Tanjong Malim.