Cool for School: Six, Seven
19 - 25 January 2026. Issue 73
Last week’s big announcement centred on education. One major change is that children as young as six can now enter Primary One. With many households having two working parents, an earlier start may suit both families and children better.
That said, there is still much room for improvement in primary school education. This week’s infographic compares Malaysian pupils’ reading and mathematics abilities at the end of primary school with those in several Southeast Asian countries and a selection of high-income nations. The result is middling at best. It also appears that many Malaysian children leave primary school without mastering basic skills.
Unfortunately, there are no separate statistics for Sarawak. With 43 percent of the population living in rural areas that generally have weaker facilities and fewer teachers, the situation here could be worse. We simply do not know.
In this week’s A String of Thought, I reflect on another thing we do not know: the future, and when we might finally start preparing for it.
Read A String of Thought here:
