Khat lessons for vernacular primary schools will begin next year as planned, Education Minister Maszlee Malik confirmed today.
- From compulsory to elective topic, with teachers given the option to decide how to teach it
- From six to three pages
- No exams on khat
- Khat not a new subject, but an activity in the BM national syllabus
Maszlee said the Cabinet has unanimously approved the introduction of the Arabic calligraphy for Year Four pupils in Mandarin- and Tamil-language schools, and indicated two main changes to lessons following the public storm generated.
“The Cabinet has decided that the introduction of Khat calligraphy will continue as planned but will take into consideration certain matters.
“The Cabinet has decided that there will be three pages in the textbook,” he told a news conference.
Originally, khat took up six out of 164 pages of the new Bahasa Malaysia (BM) Standard Four textbook, as part of language art activities.
“At the same time, the Cabinet has decided that the teachers have the option on the method of delivery for introducing khat calligraphy in their classes,”
He stressed that there are no examinations on khat.
He also reiterated that khat is not a new, standalone subject, but is part of the BM national syllabus.
The ministry previously said that plans to introduce khat had been around since 2014.