Survey: M’sian students excited to return to school despite mixed feelings

ACCORDING to a nationwide survey carried out by social enterprise Project ID, Malaysian students are generally comfortable with returning to schools physically for the new school year.

On average, students rated their comfort level returning to school to be 6.8 out of 10. As most schools in Malaysia resume in-person classes, 45% of respondents indicated positive emotions towards returning to schools, expressing emotions of trust, happiness and anticipation.

“Students are excited to go back to school. From what they have indicated, the ability to engage with their teachers more directly in physical classes and to focus better was something they have really missed during online classes,” Project ID CEO Kelvin Tan commented.

“Students respond more positively to their learning experience because they no longer have to bridge a digital gap to understand their teachers and ask questions.”

Despite that, some students continue to share that they are nervous and scared about returning to in-person classes.

These mixed feelings about returning to schools were largely attributed to anxieties interacting with their peers due to the extended absence of physical interaction, as well as health and safety concerns, and stress from catching up with schoolwork.

“Students tell us that being able to socialise with their peers again has led to an increase in their motivation to learn and returned a sense of community to their learning experience,” Tan added.

Most secondary school students have begun attending face-to-face classes without rotation since early April this year.

The survey found that while 53% of Malaysian students prefer having fully physical classes, 40% of respondents wanted some form of online and offline learning combination in their curriculum.

“Students really appreciate the flexibility, accessibility and engagement that digital learning methods continue to offer over traditional in-person classrooms. A popular suggestion from students is to incorporate digital notes and slideshows in the physical classroom,” said Tan.

“We believe in the student’s voice. We believe in hearing and taking what they have to say. As we try to build back better from the pandemic, we need to continue listening to our students and empower them to take ownership over their education,” he concluded.

The Student Voice Matters 2022 survey conducted between Feb 23 and March 23, 2022 involved 1140 student respondents from all states of Malaysia. It is a study designed to gain insight into what students in Malaysia want for their education. – May 12, 2022

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