Are we committed to getting better?<\/p>\n
By Nirwan Idrus<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Many would agree that one gets over an illness
\nmuch quicker if one really and truly wants to get better.
\nAnecdotal evidence also supports this. Just ask your doctor.<\/p>\n
How is it, for example, that there are people who have
\nsuffered massive strokes yet within three weeks are able to be
\ndischarged from hospital?<\/p>\n
Willpower is a major and, perhaps, determinant factor in
\nhealing. Experts can probably describe the internal body
\nprocesses which release certain enzymes that assist in the
\npsychological recuperation following medical mishaps such as
\nstrokes. A strong will releases some internal \"super-power\" which
\ncan work wonders.<\/p>\n
In business we also observe that those who continue to survive
\nin the face of adversity are the ones who have the internal
\nresolve to survive.<\/p>\n
With respect to economic recovery, for example, many have
\nasked why it is that the turn-around is still elusive in
\nIndonesia, unlike in Thailand, South Korea and other countries
\naffected by the monetary crisis of 1997 - 1998?<\/p>\n
Explanations abound on why this is so. Politics has been fair
\ngame -- from irrational comments by our President, for example,
\nto the personal vendetta between the President and the Governor
\nof the Central Bank and the cancerous practices of corruption,
\ncollusion and nepotism in government agencies and elsewhere.<\/p>\n
What is required in order to help Indonesia turn around?<\/p>\n
One of the fundamental prerequisites is human resources, and
\nthis brings us to education. The question is how can education
\nmeet the country's needs effectively and efficiently.<\/p>\n
It is no secret that Indonesia has still a long way to go in
\nthe education field, not only in meeting the needs of the
\ncountry, but also in satisfying the basic needs of the majority
\nof the population.<\/p>\n
Seventy percent of the work force here only have elementary
\nschool qualifications. This is at a time when neighboring
\nMalaysia, for example, is wiring itself with all sorts of new and
\nadvanced technologies; when elementary school pupils in other
\ncountries are using the internet to do their homework; when
\naccess to higher education elsewhere is pervasive and when the
\nrest of the world has entered the \"knowledge society.\" Where are
\nwe in Indonesia?<\/p>\n
The latest estimate (one is given different figures by
\ndifferent official sources) shows the number of students in
\nhigher education here is about three million.<\/p>\n
This is about 1.3 percent of the estimated population. In
\ncomparison, Malaysia has about 2.4 percent of its population in
\nhigher education (and a significant number studying outside
\nMalaysia) and New Zealand about 4.3 percent.<\/p>\n
Thus, even if we assume that the standards of higher education
\nin Indonesia are the same as in Malaysia and New Zealand, we are
\nstill a long way behind, just in percentage terms. What if the
\nstandards in Indonesia are less than those elsewhere?<\/p>\n
Many, indeed, consider that the standards here are much lower
\nthan in many developing nations, let alone developed nations.<\/p>\n
Couple this problem with the myriad of suffocating government
\nregulations, the lack of dedication among university staff, of
\nappropriate managers in higher education institutes, of
\nmanagerial, teaching and research experience among academic staff
\nin higher education institutes, and the lack of yardsticks for
\nmeasuring performance at all levels.<\/p>\n
There is also a lack of quality control and quality assurance
\nin higher education programs. Add to all of the above the problem
\nof students' high school qualifications upon entry, lack of
\neducational infrastructure, and Indonesia's pervasive corruption.
\nWhat we get is a far from pretty picture of Indonesian education
\nas the country enters the New Economy.<\/p>\n
Are these symptoms of the problem or the problem itself? The
\nreal crux of the problem is none other than actual willingness to
\nchange and to bring about change. Again excuses may be made to
\nrationalize the slow speed of change, the hiccups in bringing
\nabout change, the protracted delays in bringing cases to a
\nconclusion and so on.<\/p>\n
In short, we are not serious about \"getting better\". No amount
\nof doctoring, surgery and hospitalization will change our
\ncondition if we don't have the commitment to get better, to
\nimprove ourselves and to break the pernicious cycle of bad
\nattitudes and bad practices.<\/p>\n
How are we to do this? This very question is in fact a
\nmanifestation of the old attitudes and practices, of \"templating\"
\n-- copying a process without thinking how to get to the end
\nresult, without a care for the quality of the \"solution\".<\/p>\n
Different questions should be asked: Am I committed to getting
\nbetter? How can I stop corruption in my immediate working
\nenvironment? Imagine the change that will occur, even if only one
\nper cent of Indonesia's population engage in this endeavor.
\nHowever, our leaders must first give the lead by setting a good
\nexample.<\/p>\n
The writer is executive director of the IPMI Graduate School
\nof Business in Jakarta.<\/p>",
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