Four Kedah schools with just one UPSR candidate each

ALOR SETAR: Four schools in Kedah have only one pupil each sitting for the UPSR this year.

At SJK(C) Cheng Yu, Sandy Choon was the sole pupil, watched over by the main invigilator and two supervisors.

She said she had a nervous morning as she faced her first paper, Bahasa Melayu I, but came out of the examination hall feeling relieved.

“I was all alone and felt a bit scared at first. But the questions were not so tough,” she said with a smile.

Sandy is one of the 17 pupils, 10 girls and seven boys, at the school. There is only one pupil each in the Year One and Year Six classes.

The other schools with just one pupil taking the UPSR are SJK(C) Pei Hwa, SJK(C) Pei Eng and SJK(T) Ladang Kupang.

State Education Department deputy director Sofaruddin Ismail said 32,481 pupils are sitting for the exam in Kedah this year.

“The number was higher last year, at 33,079,” he added.

He said 570 exam centres were set up in 423 national, 89 Chinese vernacular and 58 Tamil vernacular schools.

“National schools registered 26,585 candidates; it was 3,425 from SJKC; 1,375 from SJKT; and 1,096 private candidates.

“There are 59 special needs candidates while 10 pupils are sitting for the exam in hospitals,” he said.

In Selangor, state education director Mohd Salleh Mohd Kassim was quoted by Bernama as saying that schools affected by floods have been asked to move the exam hall to the upper floor of the buildings.

In Penang, state education director Shaari Osman said the department was monitoring the flood situation in Jawi but so far, it has not affected any UPSR candidates.