PPD: Provide textbooks by tomorrow

PETALING JAYA: The Penang district education office (PPD) has instructed all schools in the state to provide textbooks to students by tomorrow.

This came after several parents, most of whom have children studying in Form Four, expressed their concerns over the delay in receiving the textbooks.

Penang PPD said all Form Four students were required to conduct screening and determine the class and stream they enter.

“Schools can start to give out text- books to Form Four students on the condition that parents must be present in school.

“They should also contact the teacher in charge of the Textbook Loan Scheme,” said an officer from PPD Penang when contacted.

A teacher from Kuala Lumpur said that most schools would conduct an orientation period of two to three weeks.

“We give them time to decide which stream will suit them best, and once they have settled down, then the textbooks will be distributed.

“If we give out the textbooks early, based on past experience, students sometimes don’t return them if they decide to change streams,” she said.

A parent, N.V. Subbarow, said his son’s class had been receiving photostated copies of pages for different subjects.

“It has been two weeks since school started.

“When we asked the school, they did not give a proper explanation but merely said the textbooks would be distributed soon,” said Subbarow.