Undoubtedly, our education needs major overhaul, especially when it comes to changing the way children are taught. The age-old system of memorising material without true comprehension does nothing to develop a child's creativity. Which is why five years ago the 'creative education method' was introduced to primary schools so that students would have to read and understand the textbook and be able to answer questions, based on their comprehension. But a recent survey by Research for Advancement of Complete Education (RACE), has found that more than half of the 100 primary school teachers who took part in the research do not know what such a method entails. Even more alarming is that half of the teachers surveyed rely on guidebooks to prepare lessons while 92 percent of the students in the sample prepare for tests using such guidebooks.

There is, therefore, a major gap between the directive given by the education ministry and its implementation at the ground level. The sample study may reflect the same situation in most public primary schools. This nullifies the significant success the government has achieved in terms of high enrolment rates and pass rates. The real issue is to make sure that students are able to retain and comprehend what they are being taught in school and this is only possible if the said creative education method is wholeheartedly adopted by teachers.

Education has become corrupted by money-making motives, allowing non-creative methods like rote learning and complete dependence on guidebooks to thrive. This is detrimental to the intellectual development of students. The education ministry must be more proactive in enforcing the adoption of the creative method by all teachers through extensive training.