The Ministry of Religious Affairs (MoRA) and the Ministry of Education (MoE) yesterday announced the integration of religious subjects into the general education system, starting on November 1.
The integration will only involve students who are studying at pre-school to Primary 3 level at religious schools. These students will continue their religious education in their respective primary schools, said Permanent Secretary (Core Education) at the MoE Dr Shamsiah Zuraini Kanchanawati binti Haji Tajuddin at a media conference at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) yesterday.
Meanwhile, Primary 4 to Primary 6 religious school students will continue their learning as usual, she said.
The move is a response to the call from His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam during this year’s National Day celebration, the permanent secretary said, adding that subjects in religious schools will be absorbed into the general curriculum in both government and private primary schools, including international schools.
The integrated religious subjects will be taught for one hour, two periods per day.
In this regard, school hours will be changed to 7.30am to noon and 1pm to 3pm.
Students will only wear the uniform of their respective schools.
The integration aims to safeguard the students’ well-being by reducing workload and time spent in school, which will further improve their school-life balance and mental health.
The change is also expected to increase learning efficiency, where the reduced school hours will give teachers and students to focus on better quality learning. – Azlan Othman
