KLANG: The national average grade (GPN) for the 2023 Sijil Tinggi Agama Malaysia (STAM) examination has improved by 0.04 points.

The GPN for 2023 is 3.09 compared to 3.13 the previous year.

GPN refers to the candidate’s performance in all subjects, ranging from one to five, with a GPN value close to one indicating better candidate performance.

Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek stated that this highlights the potential of STAM graduates to be further supported within the Ministry of Education (MOE) ecosystem.

She explained that the annual increase in GPN enables the ministry to expand the intake of candidates for the Bachelor of Education programme at Teacher Education Institutes (IPG) to STAM graduates.

“This is a step taken by the MOE as a response to the challenge of expanding admissions to IPG not only for Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) graduates but also for STAM graduates, as well as graduates of the Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia (STPM) examination and matriculation programme graduates.

“The expansion of intake into IPG will benefit STAM graduates to serve as members of the MOE community in the future,“ she said after the Minister of Education’s Meet and Greet Session with the 2023 STAM candidates at Kolej Islam Sultan Alam Shah, held here today.

A total of 4,058 candidates registered for the 2023 STAM, of which 1,294 were from MOE schools, state religious secondary schools (1,570), government religious secondary schools (244), private secondary schools (33) and private candidates (917).

Regarding the heatwave, which is expected until March 29, Fadhlina said that the ministry had instructed school management to adhere to the guidelines set based on the recommendations of the Malaysian Meteorological Department and the Ministry of Health.

She added that schools are also reminded to continuously monitor the weather conditions and immediately suspend outdoor activities if necessary.

“We have also issued instructions for any schools affected by the hot weather to comply with these guidelines to ensure the well-being and health of our children,“ she said. -Bernama