Drost, still thinker in education<\/p>\n
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
At first glance, the old man looks too weak to walk steadily on
\nhis two legs. But, don't underestimate him. He will turn like a
\nroaring lion, speaking loudly with strong zeal and
\nstraightforward statements. That is if you ask him about
\neducation.<\/p>\n
Meet Drost - a Jesuit priest whose full name is Joshepus
\nIgnatius Gerardus Maria Drost.<\/p>\n
Drost who was born in Batavia, now Jakarta, on Aug. 1, 1925,
\nis one of the most outspoken thinkers on education for middle
\nschools in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
He has written many books on education and articles for the
\nmass media.<\/p>\n
\"What I have written is deeply rooted from my (more than) 10
\nyears of hands-on experience in the field of education,
\nespecially as a high school teacher,\" Drost said.<\/p>\n
None will doubt the knowledge and mastery of the man who now
\nlives at the tranquil retreat house Wisma Samadi in Klender, East
\nJakarta.<\/p>\n
Some say he is hot tempered, which could be attributed to his
\nearly upbringing in Bondowoso in East Java, which is stereotyped
\nwith people with such a character.<\/p>\n
\"That's me. Reactive, outspoken, hot tempered, but frank and
\nstraightforward. Nothing is concealed,\" Drost admitted.<\/p>\n
It was demonstrated many times during the interview when he
\ndigressed from the topic he was explaining to correct mistaken
\nwords commonly used in the Indonesian language.<\/p>\n
\"People here are very sloppy in using incorrect words from
\nbahasa,\" said Drost.<\/p>\n
For instance, the kesenjangan or gap, is derived from senjang,
\nwhich actually means slide (miring). The correct word for gap,
\naccording to Drost, is kerumpangan, from the word rumpang.<\/p>\n
Despite his sternness, he seldom punished his students, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"I was rare to punish my students unless they had stubbornly
\nbroken the rules,\" said Drost, who had led Kanisius College high
\nschool in Central Jakarta for 10 years before starting at a new
\nhigh school, Gonzaga College, in South Jakarta, in 1986 before
\nhis retirement in 1993.<\/p>\n
Drost recalled an experience when a teacher got angry when he
\nsaw a suspended student come to school at midday to copy notes of
\nthe day's lessons from his friends.<\/p>\n
\"I said to the teacher 'that's not the way we must teach our
\nstudents'. And, I ordered the student to attend the classes as
\nnormal,\" Drost said.<\/p>\n
Being a teacher is not easy, and being a qualified teacher is
\nmore difficult. Therefore, special education for teaching, at
\nleast at college level, is needed for those who want to be a good
\nteacher, even for elementary schools, according to Drost.<\/p>\n
\"Unfortunately, many teachers are not professional,\" he said.<\/p>\n
A successful education system depends not just on the
\nchildren's capability to absorb the lessons, but more on the
\nqualification of the teachers and also on the teaching materials.<\/p>\n
In many cases, parents should be blamed for sending their
\nchildren to the wrong schools. This is related to Drost's
\nstrongly-defended opinion on the differentiation of schools for
\nthe clever and for the \"not-so clever\" students.<\/p>\n
Drost believes that general high schools should be for clever
\nstudents, while whose who are not academically inclined or those
\nwho do not plan to continue their studies at college should go to
\nvocational schools.<\/p>\n
The problems is, many parents are reluctant to send their
\nchildren to vocational schools.<\/p>\n
\"No parents are willing to admit that their children are not
\nsmart enough to enter schools meant for the clever,\" Drost said.<\/p>\n
As parents force their children to attend schools designed for
\nthe clever, the children, who are not so clever, are overwhelmed
\nand get fed up with their lessons.<\/p>\n
\"That will only mess up the children's life for the sake of
\nthe parents' egoistic craving for social esteem,\" said Drost.<\/p>\n
Drost also lambasted the government for having no courage to
\nfix the current situation for fear of mounting protests from the
\nparents.<\/p>\n
Drost is also among the experts on education who protest many
\nattempts by parents or schools to feed the children with too many
\nlessons, including English teaching in elementary schools.<\/p>\n
\"The elementary school students must be taught the Indonesian
\nlanguage in such a way that the students really masters it. Only
\nif they have a strong lingual basis are they ready to learn even
\nfour or five other languages in the next step of their study,\"
\nDrost asserted.<\/p>\n
In 1931 Drost, whose parents were Dutch, joined his family in
\nthe Netherlands, where he finished his elementary and high school
\neducation. He then continued his study at Universiteit van
\nAmsterdam. However, it was closed by German troops who invaded
\nthe country during World War II after Drost had completed just
\none year.<\/p>\n
The young Drost was sent to work at a steel plant somewhere in
\nGermany, but eventually he managed to flee back to the
\nNetherlands.<\/p>\n
After World War II he entered the Jesuit novitiate -- a
\npreliminary education to become a priest -- in Mariendaal. In
\n1948, he was sent by the Jesuit Order as a missionary to
\nIndonesia. He continued his language study in Girisonta, Ungaran,
\nCentral Java.<\/p>\n
After completing his study in philosophy in 1952, three years
\nafter he got his Indonesian citizenship, Drost was sent to learn
\nphysics at Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) in West Java.
\nFrom Bandung, he moved to Yogyakarta to study theology and later
\nwas ordained as Catholic priest. He was a lecturer at the
\nTeachers Training Institute (IKIP) Sanata Dharma in Yogyakarta
\nand became its rector in 1968 until 1976.<\/p>\n
Almost 10 years after his direct involvement in the day-to-day
\noperations of high school ended, Drost continues to produce
\naspiring thoughts on education.<\/p>\n
\"I'm still asked to share my opinion at seminars, workshops in
\nvarious forums,\" said Drost, who participated in the drafting of
\nthe 1994 curriculum for schools.<\/p>\n
Currently, Drost spends most his time writing articles, books,
\nand also translating. \"Besides, I also serve as a retreat
\ndirector here in Wisma Samadi,\" he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/drost-still-thinker-in-education-1447893297",
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