Students are studying in a classroom at Preah Sisowath High School. Hong Menea
To decide which classes or skills would best suit their personalities and talents, students should take some important points into consideration, such as self-understanding, subject understanding and a subject’s orientation toward a profession.
Guidelines to assist them with their selections are provided in the education ministry’s “Selection of science, social sciences or technical skills”, which were re-published on June 27.
According to the guide, released by the Ministry of Youth, Education and Sport in 2020, self-understanding means that students should study themselves to discover where their innate talents lie.
Subject understanding simply means that they should ascertain which subjects they are most gifted in.
As for the decision on a subject’s orientation towards a profession, students must decide whether the higher levels of a subject are in line with something they intend to pursue further.
Students should also consider whether secondary level subjects or vocational technical subjects will support the majors they plan on taking in the future.
The guide allows students a better possibility of making decisions that will prepare them for their tertiary studies and future career plans.
The guide spans 53 pages and can be accessed through the ministry’s Facebook page, Telegram channel or Open Education Resources website oer.moeys.gov.kh/.
Ministry spokesman Ros Soveacha told The Post on June 28 that the guidelines were designed to support students on their way to study at the upper secondary level. The new curriculum requires the classification of classes into science, social science or technical education.
Education minister Hang Chuon Naron explains in the introduction to the guide that the general education and technical education curriculum that was introduced in 2016 is consistent with international standards in terms of content, teaching and learning methods. It uses modern methods of evaluating students’ academic results to build their ability to respond to the human resource demands of the nation, region and the world.
“The guideline is a tool which will help them decide on classes according to what suits their abilities and natural gifts,” he said.
“The ministry hopes that students who are preparing to continue their studies at the upper secondary level will make use of this document in accordance with the instructions in each section, and will take assessment tests before making a decision. In this way, they will be able to plan a successful study path,” he added.
Pech Bolen, president of the Federation of Education Services in Cambodia (FESC) and CEO of Westline Education Group Co Ltd, said that for grade 12 students, choosing majors and applying for scholarships must be carefully considered.
“They should match their preferences to the subjects they excelled in at high school, and avoid majors that include the subjects that they were not good at,” he said.
“They are no longer children at this age; they are now pillars of their families and important pillars of the nation. Before making a decision, I would encourage them to consult their parents and guardians to make sure that their decision is right,” he said.
