Comics can be 'gateway' to regular reading<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Comic books can stimulate children's interest in
\nreading, experts said Saturday.<\/p>\n
Educator Henny Supolo Sitepu, cartoonist Dwi Koendoro,
\nliterary critics Sudjoko and Jaya Suprana discussed the effect of
\ncomics on children's reading interests and their imagination.<\/p>\n
Each expert looked at the positive and negative aspects of
\nreading comics and concluded that, if managed well, comics could
\nhelp children develop a love of reading.<\/p>\n
Henny, who heads the research and development department at
\nthe Al Izhar Islamic School, said the comic craze could serve as
\na basis for children to develop other interests.<\/p>\n
But parents needed a strategy and should provide assistance
\nbecause not all comics were suitable reading material, she said.<\/p>\n
She said comics that displayed sadism and violence were
\nexamples of unsuitable reading material for children.<\/p>\n
\"What's important in comics is that parents can use them to
\nexplore children's other interests,\" she said at a seminar
\norganized by the new Tablo children's comic tabloid.<\/p>\n
Parents needed to discuss the contents of comics with their
\nchildren, help them explore the possibilities of other plots, and
\n\"step up the level of difficulty in the reading through critical
\nquestions,\" she said<\/p>\n
\"It is naive to hope that through an interest in comics
\nchildren will automatically enjoy other forms of reading,\" she
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Children needed to be stimulated to broaden their reading
\ninterests, she said.<\/p>\n
Parents can help their children by reading aloud to them and
\nhelping them choose books, she said.<\/p>\n
\"Without it (the assistance), a child will become a mere comic
\nreader,\" Henny said.<\/p>\n
Jaya Suprana agreed and said comics were only a medium and
\ncould be positive or negative depending on how they were utilized
\nto develop creativity and reading interest.<\/p>\n
Sudjoko, a professor of fine arts and design at the Bandung
\nInstitute of Technology, expressed alarm at Indonesians' poor
\nreading habits.<\/p>\n
He said the situation was dire enough to merit concerted
\naction from the Ministry of Education and Culture, the press and
\nthe society in general.<\/p>\n
He said the People's Consultative Assembly should draw up a
\ndecree to deal with Indonesians' poor reading habits in its next
\nState Policy Guidelines.<\/p>\n
\"What's bad is that this is a problem that we actually hide
\nfrom... we consider the question of who's next vice
\npresident... brawls, football... (the split of the) Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party as national problems, but not our poor reading
\nhabits,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He deplored the lack of effort to stimulate reading interest,
\nand that the problem was not treated seriously. (05\/swe)<\/p>",
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