Abbreviations You Should Know Before Your Child Starts Primary School In Malaysia

TMK, SBT, PT3, or KBAT, LINUS and KSSR. Do you know what these letters stand for? Here is a compilation of what we think parents whose children will be starting school in SK or SJKC/SJKT soon should know before their child starts primary school.

1. KBSR - Kurikulum Bersepadu Sekolah Rendah

Almost as soon as you know this, you can forget it because this is the old curriculum which is no longer in use. Your child will now be using the KSSR syllabus instead.

2. KSSR - Kurikulum Standard Sekolah Rendah

Now, you should know this because this is the curriculum your child will be studying in school. What is the difference between KBSR and KSSR? Less homework for one and more HOTS for another which brings us to the next abbreviation.

3. HOTS - High Order Thinking Skills

With the KSSR curriculum, there is a shift to train children to think and apply what they have learned in school. For example, HOTS questions asked during examinations may gear more towards subjective rather than objective and may be a bit more tricky and not so straightforward.

4. KBAT -  Kemahiran Berfikir Aras Tinggi

KBAT = HOTS. They are the same. Just in different language that is all.

5 PBS - Pentaksiran Berasaskan Sekolah

The English acronym for this one is SBA or School Based Assessments. Under KSSR, schools move away from testing in one examination to more school based work like projects and regular classwork or classroom assessment. Since we're on the subject, you should also know PBP which stands for Pentaksiran Berasaskan Pusat which means centrally based assessments or examinations like the UPSR.

6. LINUS - Literacy And Numeracy Screening

This one causes the most confusion among parents whose children are starting primary school for the first time. This is not an entrance exam. Rather, it is a screening test for remedial action to assist weak students. Read up my old post on What is LINUS to understand more about LINUS.

7. SBT - Sekolah Berprestasi Tinggi

Don't mix up SBA with SBT. SBT are schools which meet certain criteria in terms of academic performance and extra curricular achievements which are then awarded this special status. These schools have extra funds and autonomy in managing their schools.

8. SK/SJKC/SJKT/SMK/SMJK   

These are types of schools

SK=Sekolah Kebangsaan
SJKC=Sekolah Kebangsaan Jenis Cina
SJKT=Sekolah Kebangsaan Jenis Tamil
If you see an "R" in SRJKC it merely means Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan Cina
SMK=Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan
SMJK=Sekolah Menengah Jenis Kebangsaan

9. UPSR/PMR/PT3/SPM/STPM

These are school examinations:

UPSR=Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah
PMR=Penilaian Menengah Rendah which replaces the SRP=Sijil Rendah Pelajaran
PT3= Pentaksiran Tingkatan 3 which replaces the PMR
SPM=Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia
STPM=Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia

10. PPD/JPN

These are departments you may be dealing with:

PPD=Pejabat Pendidikan Daerah
JPN=Jabatan Pendidikan Negeri

You may need to deal with these departments if you are applying for a school transfer or appealing to change school. Otherwise, most of the time you won't need to know these abbreviations.

11. BC/BM/BI/MT/PM/RBT/TMK/PJ/PS/PK

BC=Bahasa Cina (Chinese)
BM=Bahasa Malaysia (Malay)
BI=Bahasa Inggeris (English)
MT=Matematik (Math)
PM=Pendidikan Moral (Moral)
RBT=Rekabentuk Dan Teknologi (Design And Technology)
TMK=Teknologi Maklumat Dan Komunikasi (Information Technology And Communication)
PJ=Pendidikan Jasmani (Physical Education - gym activity)
PSV=Pendidikan Seni Visual (Art)
PK=Pendidikan Kesihatan (Theory part for Physical Education classes)
TASMIK=Quran Reading Class for muslim students in SK
BT=Bahasa Tamil for SJKT
BA=Bahasa Arab for SK

Finally, these are subjects your child will be learning in school and may vary depending on school usage. 

Follow our blog to find out more about what these batch of abbreviations mean when we talk about 

Subjects Your Child Will Be Learning In Primary School Under the KSSR curriculum in our coming posts.

12. DLP

Dual Language Programme - The DLP was announced in the 2016 Budget as an optional programme for schools whereby the PTA (Parents-Teachers Association) of selected schools can decide whether to teach certain subjects in two languages, English and Bahasa Malaysia.

13. PPPM

PPPM stands for Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia 2013-2025 ie the Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013-2025.

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