Clarify school fund administration, ministry urged

INDIAN parents have urged the Education Ministry to clarify the responsibilities of Tamil school headmasters and Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs) in administering funds provided, reported Malaysia Nanban.

Many Tamil schools have reportedly received between RM20,000 and RM300,000 from the government for repairs and refurbishment.

While school headmasters are tasked with deciding how to spend the money given to each school, they sometimes face interference from the PTAs, some parents who spoke to the daily claimed.

The headmasters are required to obtain approvals for the proposed repair works from the district and state education officials.

While they usually receive good support from the PTAs, some who were unaware of their roles tried to interfere and this hampered efforts to improve the school and caused misunderstandings between the school management and the PTA.

The parents said the ministry should issue clear guidelines so that each party was aware of their roles and limitations.

> Two Tamil schools in Kuala Lumpur and Pahang have welcomed Malay students who have enrolled for the new school year, reported Makkal Osai.

SJK (T) Taman Melawati welcomed Mohd Adib Muharimi and Khairunisa

Ataviya Khairul Azman to the school’s preschool programme.

School headmistress Yasotha Manikam said this showed the improving standards of Tamil schools and that they were an attractive option for non-Indian families.

The Melawati school has many achievements to its name, including a Sekolah Transformasi 25. Another Malay student in the school also completed his studies with excellent results in the UPSR, she said.