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Kota Kinabalu: Mastery of science and technology must continue to be strengthened among students as the country’s TIMSS performance remains below that of several East Asian nations.

This was stated by Professor Dr Lay Yoon Fah at a professional lecture at Dewan Bankuasi, Dewan Canselor UMS, recently.

The lecture presented a comprehensive analysis of factors influencing the science achievement of Malaysia’s Form Two students in the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), with comparisons involving Southeast and East Asian countries.

The lecture was part of the university’s intellectual tradition and a manifestation of its knowledge culture, symbolising institutional recognition of academic excellence.

“This platform allows scholars to share research findings that not only benefit the academic community but can also be utilised by society and policymakers in shaping national development, said VC Datuk Dr Kasim Mansor.

Dr Lay explained that students’ science achievement is influenced by multiple dimensions, including home environment support, school composition and resources, as well as school climate and safety.

“Principal and teacher preparedness, classroom teaching approaches, and students’ level of engagement and attitudes towards science are significant contributors to student performance in TIMSS,” he said.

The study compared Malaysia’s performance with Southeast Asian countries such as Singapore and Thailand, as well as East Asian economies including Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Dr Lay said secondary data from TIMSS were analysed using the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) approach to obtain a deeper understanding of student-level factors.

“Since Malaysia’s participation in TIMSS began in 1995, the country has continued to lag behind East Asian counterparts. Therefore, a collaborative approach involving ministries, schools, families and students is crucial to strengthening national performance in the future,” he added.