THE Education Ministry (MOE) has pledged to resolve the shortage of teachers in all states before the new school session begins in March.

Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said her ministry announced earlier that it would fill 50% of the estimated 3,000 teachers needed in Sarawak before March, as the first step towards solving the shortage of teachers in the state.

“In other states, there is also a shortage of teachers, but not as critical compared with Sarawak, so the ministry will first address the problem in Sarawak.

“We will also examine and look into this matter in terms of the preparation of our teachers before schools reopen in March. We will overcome the teacher shortage issue in any state,” she told reporters after attending the Nibong Tebal parliamentary constituency Chinese New Year open house today.

When asked to comment on her statement that there would be no restrictions for teachers to voice concerns related to their job on social media, she said she is of the view that as long as it is constructive, the ministry has no problem accepting it.

She said the MOE always has room to entertain constructive criticism, especially from teachers, but it needs to be done through the proper channels.

“We at MOE will accept criticism because we are ready to listen and also want that input, (especially) from our teachers,” she said.

On Friday, Fadhlina said she wants the culture of issuing warnings to teachers who criticise the education service on social media to cease immediately. 

This was in response to a special education teacher at SMK Jalan Reko, Hasmadi Hamdan, who was issued with a warning for being critical of education policymakers on social media. – Bernama, January 29, 2023.