ABSTRACT
In developing human capital, education is regarded as the primary determinant of a country’s growth, be it in the economic, technological, or social spheres. Human capital grounded on creativity, innovation, and quality can be achieved with proper educational planning. Malaysia has, for an exceptionally long time, been serious in providing education for a diverse population of students, including those with gifts and talents. However, the educational provision tailored for gifted and talented students – via various programmes which started in the 1960s – slowly perished due to lack of training, funding, and leadership. Nonetheless, the movement to reignite the gifted and talented education took a new path, in which Malaysia launched two gifted and talented education programmes, namely, the Pusat PERMATA pintar™ Negara in 2009, and Pusat PERMATA Insan in 2010. Both programmes were developed with specific objective to realign the current educational provision by systematically identifying and nurturing local students with gifts and talents. With the launching of Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013–2025 in 2012, gifted and talented education programme has been given a new direction by the Ministry of Education (MOE) to cater to the targeted population of students. This chapter will discuss in detail the development, reform, and way forward of this programme in the national education system.
