KSSR and the Modular Approach Next to Phonics, the Modular Approach or Modular Configuration is one aspect in KSSR

that seems to be inviting a lot of scratching of the heads among Malaysian teachers. What is this Modular Approach all about?

Before we continue, I need to set this straight: I am no expert on KSSR, or Phonics, or Modular Approach or anything related to education for that matter. Its just that when people around me start questioning things, I cant help but try to read up and find the answers to those questions as best I could. And all these things that I put in this post (and all the posts before this) on KSSR are merely what I managed to gather from my little reading of books, documents, articles and some Internet researches. Some of the things that I write could probably be a bit inaccurate, and if that is so, I humbly and sincerely invite you to enlighten and correct me. I like to share, sharing is my passion, and I believe that sharing is equal to caring. Heheh! ;-) This is important to be established before I move on because I dont want my readers to assume that I have the slightest pretension that whatever I write here may have any authoritative value whatsoever. Please bear in mind that this is just a simple blog by a small and insignificant primary school teacher in a remote town called Kunak. Im only putting down my thoughts and reflections on matters that interest me. My main aim is to provide one medium for us to share our thoughts, opinions and knowledge and nothing more beyond that. Please feel free to leave comments about the topic below my blog posts if you like, or if you prefer, you could always send me a message through Twitter or Facebook and we could continue our discussion on the topic from there.

Having established that, allow me to move on to the topic that Ive chosen to write about today: The Modular Approach in KSSR.

Modular?

The word modular is an adjective that comes from the noun module. According to Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary (2003), module is defined as:

1. one of a set of separate parts which, when combined, form a complete whole; 2. one of the units which together make a complete course taught especially at a college or university; 3. a part of a spacecraft which can operate independently of the other parts, especially when separate from them.

We can see the connection of Definition 1 and Definition 2 with education and KSSR, and although Definition 3 is directly related to a spacecraft (heheh!), I decided to include it here because it does have its relevance to KSSR.

'Module' is the noun, and 'modular' is the adjective. Describing something as 'modular' means referring to it as having separate units that when combined together make a complete whole. Therefore, we could roughly interpret 'modular approach' in education as an approach where different units (or skills) taught separately or individually make up one whole complete curriculum when they are combined together. Furthermore, using the spaceship analogy, learners subscribed to this curriculum are also expected to be able to use (or 'operate') the individual skills ('parts') independently of the other skills, even (and especially) when separate from them.

Modular Education in International Learning Institutions

Modular education is still new in Malaysia education scene, especially in primary school context. Yet, the idea itself is not entirely new. Internationally, a lot of education or training institutions worldwide have adapted the modular approach in their curriculum or system. This is especially true in higher learning institutions, such as universities and colleges and also in professional trainings conducted by professional boards in the medical, economic or legal fields.

In a modular education, learners would learn topics, skills and units separately or by 'modules'. TVETipedia, the online portal for the exchange of information on technical and vocational education and training (TVET) hosted by UNESCO-UNEVOC explains modular education as "a training made up of a determined number of modules" (read more here). The two requirements for a training module: 1. It should be 'get on touch' in an independent way. 2. It should have its own internal coherence.

To make the idea of 'modular education' clearer, it would be helpful to take a look at how some education institutions run their modular curriculum. The Ramkhamhaeng University in Thailand, for instance, when describing their 'Modular Course System', explains to potential students that:

In the traditional university system, each subject (course) is stretched over the whole semester period with usually three lecture hours a week. In the modular course system, in contrast, each course is usually two days a week for four weeks.

The modular course system makes understanding much easier since it is more intense than the traditional system of teaching one course over a whole semester.

(http://www.iis.ru.ac.th/iis/modular_course_system.html)

YWAM Finland which also adapts the modular education system states some of the benefits of the modular education system that they apply in their institution:

1. It provides students with intensive and focused time on each topic. 2. It allows mobility for both students and teachers (faculty). 3. It allows for different learning strategy. (Read more here).

Curriculum Organisation in KSSR

So how is the curriculum organised under this new KSSR? According to the official Standard Document for KSSR published by the Curriculum Development Department of the Ministry of Education, primary education is divided into two stages: Stage One refers to Year 1, 2 and 3 and Stage 2 refers to Year 4, 5 and 6. In Year 1 and 2, there will be four modules:

Module 1: Listening and Speaking Module 2: Reading Module 3: Writing Module 4: Language Arts

In Year 3 to Year 6, grammar is added to the above four modules:

Module 1: Listening and Speaking Module 2: Reading Module 3: Writing Module 4: Language Arts Module 5: Grammar

Modular Approach in KSSR

Based on the four (for Year 1 and 2) or five (for Year 3 to 6) modules for KSSR English language, teachers are expected to teach these modules separately and individually, and in sequence. This differs greatly from KBSR where all the four language skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing are not expected to be taught separately. In KBSR, the four language skills should be integrated in a thematic and topical lesson. Language arts and grammar are incorporated (most of the time in a covert manner) throughout the curriculum as part of a lesson activity. On the other hand, in KSSR, teachers are expected to teach the skills separately and in sequence, starting with Module 1 (Listening and Speaking), then move on to Module 2 (Reading), then Module 3 (Writing) and Module 4 (Language Arts). For Year 3 onwards, after Module 4 the sequence will continue with Module 5 (Grammar).

According to the KSSR Standard Document, through the modular curriculum, "pupils will be able to focus on the development of salient language skills or sub-skills under each module through purposeful activities in meaningful contexts" (KSSR Standard Document, page 7). The Standard Document itself is quite clear in explaining the policy on which the modular approach in KSSR is built on, yet it doesn't seem to hinder questions upon questions being piled on one after another, by teachers and educators all over, especially those who are directly involved with the dissemination and implementation of the new curriculum known as KSSR.